Journey to the Sea: Entering Africa ⑤ | High Mountain Damming Friendship Long Metron | Dams | ⑤ |

We must take enhancing people's well-being as the starting point and foothold for the development of China Africa relations. China Africa cooperation should bring tangible results and benefits to the people of China and Africa.

-- On September 3, 2018, Xi Jinping pointed out in his keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation

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The Nile River, Congo River, Niger River, Zambezi River, Orange River... The vast African continent is filled with endless flowing rivers. Over the past decade, batches of Hunan builders have traveled thousands of miles to build over 10 dams on rivers in Africa, promoting water management and benefiting people's livelihoods. In Lesotho, the "Kingdom of Mountains", from the Metron Dam to the Highland Dam, Hunan builders have continuously written legends of dam construction and water control.

Hunan Daily All-Media Reporter Meng Jiaoyan

The Drakens Mountains run through the highlands of South Africa, lifting Lesotho high.

In late April, the reporter took off from the South African capital Johannesburg by plane and entered the airspace over Lesotho in half an hour. Through the porthole, the beauty of the "High Mountain Kingdom" fills the eyes.

The Orange River, the fifth largest river in Africa, pours out from the sprawling mountains, shimmering with blue waves, winding westward towards the grasslands of South Africa.

To the southwest of the Orange River, on the Putsana River, the Metron Dam is peaceful and serene. The water surface is sparkling with ripples.

At the end of 2015, the Metron Dam, constructed by China Hydroelectric Eighth Bureau, was completed. The Matron Lake, built by damming the river, solves the water problem for one-third of Lesotho's population and is known as a "win-win model for China and Africa.".

Now, on the Orange River, another super hydraulic and hydroelectric project, the Highland Project Phase II, has started construction. The Orange River, which has nurtured generations of Lesotho people, has been revitalized by the arrival of China's hydropower construction forces.

Lesotho in southern Africa, with every inch of land above an altitude of 1300 meters, is known as the "Kingdom of Mountains".

The distribution of precipitation is uneven, with frequent droughts and floods. The people here regard water as gold. The blue, white, and green colors on the flag of Lesotho symbolize "precipitation, peace, and prosperity". Among them, blue symbolizes people's beautiful wishes for water.

The Metron Dam on the outskirts of Maseru, the capital of Lesotho, is now a tourist "check-in point" in Lesotho. From the top of the dam, which is over 80 meters high, you can overlook the high mountains and flat lakes, where water and sky blend in.

On a morning at the end of April, the reporter visited the village of Metron on the left bank of the dam. The sound of water in the village is cheerful, creating a scene of pastoral songs. At the tap water collection point, the reporter encountered a resident named Mamohachi who was receiving water. "With clear tap water, so happy!" Mamohachi invited reporters to his home to take a look.

Humming a tune, briskly walking home, washing vegetables, cooking, and watering flowers, Mamohachi's comfortable day began.

Before the completion of the Metron Dam, the villagers suffered from water scarcity. "Go to the river to fetch water, walk for over 20 minutes, three times a day, and the river water is often not very clean," said Mamohachi.

In January 2012, the large-scale water conservancy project Metron Dam, which mainly supplies water to Marcelo and surrounding cities, began construction. China Hydropower Eighth Bureau went to Lesotho to undertake the construction of the dam project.

"At the end of 2015, Lesotho experienced a rare severe drought and the country entered a state of emergency. At this time, the Metron Dam had just been completed, and the Metron Lake, which had been stored for a year, rescued the disaster." Zeng Xiaobing, an employee of China Hydropower Eighth Bureau, told reporters.

On the lawn of the village headquarters, Haarlebato, the village chief of Metron, Makar, the principal of Metron Elementary School, and several villagers warmly welcomed each other.

"Welcome home!" Harrabato was delighted to reunite with his old friend Zeng Xiaobing. He took out a copy of the Lesotho Times published in February 2016. The newspaper records scenes of nationwide celebration when the dam was built. Former Lesotho Prime Minister Mosisili praised, "The Metron project has brought a new life to the people of Lesotho."

"Chinese builders brought water from dams into the village, and we used clean tap water. This also gave us more time to graze and farm." Harrabato happily shared the changes in the village.

Zeng Xiaobing brought good news about the start of the second phase of the Highland project.

About 130 kilometers northeast of the Metron Dam, in the town of Mabrani in Mohotron City, it is the highest point in southern Africa. The highland dam built here will be a more magnificent dam.

During the dry season, the Orange River flows quietly at the bottom of the valley. "The high mountains are exposed, the rapids are flowing, and during the rainy season, you will see their power." Hou Fuqiang, Chief Engineer of the Highland Project of China Hydropower Eighth Bureau, told reporters that the Orange River originates from the Lesotho Highlands in the Drakens Mountains and is the fifth largest river in Africa and the largest river in Lesotho. After flowing westward into South Africa, it is called the Orange River and is the mother river of South Africa. The hydropower resources of this large river are mainly concentrated in the upper reaches of Lesotho.

As early as 1986, Lesotho signed an agreement with the South African government to launch a highland project that would take a total of 30 years to develop. The second phase of the project mainly involves the construction of dams, auxiliary dams, cofferdams, and water conveyance tunnels. This is a cross-border water conservancy and hydropower project that carries the water resource development dreams of Lesotho and South Africa.

In November 2022, China Hydroelectric Eighth Bureau took the lead in establishing a joint venture, winning the bid for this super project in a fierce competition with internationally renowned contractors such as the UK and Italy, relying on exquisite technology, excellent quality, and accumulated reputation.

"The river water intercepted by the dam will be transported to Gauteng Province, South Africa." Hou Fuqiang said that the Highland project has a maximum water supply of up to 70 cubic meters per second, which is more than 60 times that of the Metron Dam project, and is crucial for water use in the South African capital Johannesburg.

There are several villages scattered on the mountain. The reporter saw that in the stone houses shaped like straw hats, most of the villagers were lit with kerosene lamps. The Highland Dam plans to build a small power plant, which will provide power to surrounding villages and towns in the future, ending the history of local power outages.

On May 23rd this year, under the joint witness of King Lezier III of Lesotho and President Ramaphosa of South Africa, the groundbreaking ceremony for the second phase of the Highlands project was held. President Ramaphosa said at the groundbreaking ceremony that the Highland project is a great undertaking that will benefit the people of South Africa and Lesotho.

On the highland project construction site that stretches for several kilometers, the main construction has not yet begun, and the construction momentum has already been set up on the three major campsites and 10 access roads.

In China, a road of the same level can be repaired within a month. Being in a foreign country makes construction progress difficult to predict.

The owner has put forward strict requirements for localized employment: hiring a corresponding proportion of local people according to four levels: manager team, senior management personnel, skilled workers, and general workers. For example, general workers are required to come 100% from Lesotho and prioritize recruitment from the city of Mohotron, where the project is located.

"Having been in Africa for more than 10 years, we have adhered to localized development and worked hard to achieve win-win and integration. We have trained over 10000 African employees," said Zeng Xiaobing. This time, the project department made the same decision, recruiting first and then passing the training.

Faced with time-consuming and labor-intensive training, "Chinese masters" step forward.

In the metal structure workshop, Liu Jie, a senior technician from China Hydropower Eighth Bureau and a "great country craftsman", demonstrated the operation to the newly hired general worker with a welding gun in hand. Mofka and 5 other skilled workers serve as foremen, with one team in each group and 10 people in each team. They are then grouped for training. Mofka was Liu Jie's "African apprentice" during the Metron Dam project and has now become a highly sought after senior technician in the local and even South Africa.

Liu Jie brought out more than 40 African apprentices like Mofka.

"If the Highland project starts, I'll look for you again!" When the Metron Dam was completed in 2015, Mofka and Liu Jie had a beautiful agreement. Over the years, Liu Jie has been in contact with Mofka. Now, not only has the agreement come true, but Mofka has also become Liu Jie's good assistant.

In the construction area of the access road, Yan Yongliang, the director of the excavation work area, is leading the workers to carry out the construction. Based on his experience in building dams in Uganda, Yan Yongliang created a set of teaching materials for workers on different equipment such as excavators, rolling machines, and dump trucks. The textbook is concise and easy to understand, and local operators have made rapid progress.

When constructing the Metron Dam, the "Chinese master" accompanied the "African apprentice" and set a record of less than 4 millimeters of deviation in the center axis of the 245 meter diversion tunnel. During the construction of the dam, several engineering associations from countries such as the United States and Switzerland organized visits to the Metron project, making it the main destination for the international dam conference held in South Africa.

With outstanding construction techniques, the Metron Dam has won the "Excellent Infrastructure Award" and "Excellent International Project Award" from the American Engineering Management Association, becoming a star project in Lesotho.

Compared to the Metron Dam, the size and difficulty of the Highland Dam have increased exponentially. The main dam is designed with a height of 171 meters and a length of 921 meters, using panel stacking technology. There are not many 171 meter high rockfill dams in China.

"This will not be difficult for us. I believe that with the 'Chinese master', we can definitely build the Highland Dam into the best dam in Africa." Mofka and his colleagues are full of confidence.

During the peak construction period, more than 2000 people were employed, including 1800 local employees. At present, more than 500 local employees are catching up with the competition and have high morale.

Roger Horote, manager of Lesotho Company, a joint venture of the Highland project, told

Will it snow in Africa? In the impression of most people, apart from the perennial snow on Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa is left with only scorching sunshine and unbearable heat.

On May 11th, Lesotho experienced early winter snow, and a layer of snow blanketed the alpine meadows.

The highland dam project is located at an altitude of 2400 meters, with a minimum winter temperature of minus 10 degrees Celsius and cold winds coming from all directions.

On the open wilderness, three rows of white makeshift houses stand alone.

"This is our living quarters, the employee dormitories left over from the first phase of the project," said Zhu Min, an engineer at the High Altitude Project of China Hydropower Eighth Bureau.

A room of less than 6 square meters is equipped with two one meter wide beds. Two people squeezed into a room, unable to turn their bodies.

"Now that air conditioning is installed, the conditions are much better." Zhu Min explained that when he first arrived here to build the access road, the highland was still a "four no" area without water, electricity, houses, and networks. Everyone is staying at the homes of residents in the nearby Massaco village.

During the six-month stay, residents carried water from the river every day and provided it to everyone free of charge. "After taking a cold shower for half a year, my heart was warm." Everyone was deeply moved.

Zhu Min also found that local residents take great care of the grassland.

In the high mountain areas of Lesotho, people make a living by grazing, and the grasslands are pastures. In high-altitude areas, the surface soil is relatively thin, and the maximum length of grass is only 20 centimeters.

In order not to damage the local vegetation, the project department continuously improves environmental protection measures, including soil and water monitoring, sewage and drainage system treatment, before the start of the project. The construction environmental protection indicators have been upgraded, and the blasting dust indicators are stricter than the domestic requirements.

In the construction area, construction workers carefully cut off the surface soil and store it for future greening. In the living area, garbage classification is finely managed.

"Chinese people have come, we share difficulties and happiness, and building a good dam is our common wish," said Madiguani, the chief of the Massa village.

The highland project has a construction period of approximately 6 years. As the project starts, batches of Hunan builders will gradually travel from thousands of miles away to this place.

Liu Hengyi Wei, a young man born in 1998 in Changde, is the son of Liu Jie, a "great country craftsman". After graduating from university, he resolutely chose to devote himself to overseas engineering. In his opinion, there is a stage for realizing dreams on the "the Belt and Road".

Looking at the vast African continent, there are magnificent rivers such as the Nile, Congo, and Niger. They nourish the fertile land and contain infinite energy.

There is a map of Africa hanging in the office of the Highland Project. The dam projects built by Hunan people are marked one by one on the map——

The Bouvet hydroelectric power station in Ghana was praised by then Ghanaian President Mahama as a "great example of cooperation between the people of Canada and China.".

The Zonggru hydropower station in Nigeria will greatly alleviate the country's power supply shortage.

Karuma Hydropower Station in Uganda was connected to the grid for power generation in March this year, marking the important achievements of the "the Belt and Road" cooperation model project between China and Uzbekistan

Since the construction of the Bouvet Hydroelectric Station in Ghana in 2007, hydropower builders in Hunan have been covering most of Africa, undertaking more than 10 large-scale water conservancy and hydropower projects.

Lesotho's Minister of Public Works and Transport, Mattegato Motayane, said that Lesotho's infrastructure is still very weak. Africa is a treasure trove of hydropower, wind energy, and solar energy, and the prospects for cooperation between China and Africa are very broad.

"The dams symbolizing friendship between China and Africa on the rivers inspire our younger generation to take over the baton of friendly cooperation and continue to pass it on," said Liu Hengyi.

Journalist's Notes

The water of hope irrigates the flower of friendship

Meng Jiaoyan

Africa is a continent with extremely uneven spatial and temporal distribution of water resources and precipitation. Lesotho is also like this, with abundant water resources but extremely low development rates, still lacking in water.

From Metro to the highlands, we feel that the locals see hope when they see water. In 2012, people from Hunan went to Lesotho and spent nearly 5 years building Lesotho's first large-scale water conservancy project. When we revisited, the villagers happily shared the gratifying changes after using clean tap water over the years.

From Metro to Highlands, we were deeply moved by the extended friendship. When they first arrived in Metro, the builders did not have a clean water source, and the villagers contributed precious well water; When the dam was completed, in order to repay the villagers, the builders not only brought clean lake water to the village, but also repaired roads and school buildings to help disadvantaged students. In the highland project, the touching story of "you delivering water for free, I take care of the green mountains" continues.

From the Metron Dam to the Highland Dam, this is another fruitful achievement of China Africa cooperation. Chinese people are using first-class engineering quality and efficiency to showcase the Chinese spirit and image, allowing the water of hope to continuously irrigate the more brilliant flower of China Africa friendship.

African voice

Nigerian Electricity Minister Abubakar Aliyu:

The quality of the Zonggelu hydropower station project is exquisite. From the progress of project construction, the entire power station has the conditions for grid connected power generation. I believe that soon, Nigeria's power supply shortage will be effectively alleviated.

Former Ghanaian President John Mahama:

Thank you to the Chinese government and Chinese enterprises for helping the Ghanaian people achieve their centenary dream. The Bouvet hydropower station is a great example of cooperation between the people of Canada and China. Chinese enterprises have built high-quality and beautiful projects, which will undoubtedly deepen Canada China relations.

President of Burundi Ewalist Ndayishmiye:

Burundi is in a difficult period of development, and the Chinese government has always accompanied us in our difficult times. Now that there is electricity, we also need to work hard on the path of development, just like China.

The voice of "going out to sea"

Jiang Qinghua, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of China Hydroelectric Eighth Bureau:

As a central enterprise stationed in Hunan and the largest overseas engineering contractor in Hunan, we have a high view of international business and a great deal of love. Adhering to the principle of joint consultation, joint construction and sharing, we have made efforts in economic development, employment promotion, improvement of people's livelihood, cultural exchanges and other aspects, and fully served the construction of the "the Belt and Road".

Zhou Feng, Secretary of the Party Committee of China Electric Power Construction Group Zhongnan Survey, Design and Research Institute Co., Ltd.:

We will continue to take technology and management as the core, continue to explore the path of diversification of overseas business, improve the ability of localized resource allocation, actively participate in and serve the global economic construction and energy transformation, create more international quality projects, create more value for partners, and contribute to the implementation of the "the Belt and Road" initiative.

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Hunan and Africa have achieved fruitful results in energy cooperation

In Africa, energy projects built by Hunan enterprises and people shine like diamonds: the Karuma hydropower station in Uganda has been praised by the President; The Zonggru Hydroelectric Power Station in Nigeria, the largest hydroelectric project in the country, recently achieved full power generation; 48 "big windmills" are about to rotate with the wind at the Aisa Wind Power Station in Ethiopia

Over the past decade, Hunan enterprises have undertaken nearly 30 large-scale energy projects in Africa, covering new energy fields such as hydropower, thermal power, wind power, and photovoltaics. They have promoted fruitful energy cooperation between Hunan and Africa, benefiting the vast majority of African people.

The The Republic of Uganda is located in eastern Africa, known as the "East African Water Town". The White Nile River runs through its territory, and the local hydropower infrastructure is still weak. At present, the three units of the Karuma Hydropower Station in Uganda, constructed by China Hydropower Eighth Bureau, are accelerating their commissioning and sprinting for grid connection for power generation. Karuma Hydropower Station is currently the largest hydropower station in Uganda, with a total installed capacity of 600 MW for six units. After all units are put into operation, it will increase Uganda's total power generation by nearly 50%. This project carries Uganda's dream of becoming a prosperous and strong country, and has attracted the attention of the heads of state of China and Ukraine.

Ethiopia, known as the "Roof of Africa", welcomed the construction of the only wind power project in the eastern region - the Aisa wind power project in 2019. China Hydroelectric Eighth Bureau has installed 48 sets of single unit 2.5MW wind turbines here, and 32 of them have been installed and debugged so far. After the completion of the project, it is expected to provide 467 million kilowatt hours of clean electricity annually.

In Burundi, the Huji Baji Hydropower Station is a hydropower station for China's foreign assistance and a symbol of friendship between China and Burundi. It is supervised by Powerchina Central South Survey, Design and Research Institute Co., Ltd. The power station is located in the lower reaches of the Huzibaji River in the south of Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi. On September 6, 2022, the project will be put into operation half a year ahead of schedule, increasing the power supply of Burundi by about one-third.

In the past decade, the Central South Survey, Design and Research Institute has entered Africa and vigorously expanded cooperation in hydropower resource development. It has planned and designed the Songdong Hydropower Station in Cameroon, the Natiga Hydropower Station, and two major hydropower stations in Ethiopia.

In energy engineering construction, from design schemes to construction schemes, from construction techniques to equipment matching, Hunan enterprises have transmitted Chinese technology, winning widespread praise from African countries and repeatedly receiving honors in the field of engineering construction. For example, the Bouvet Hydroelectric Power Station in Ghana won the Luban Award for Overseas Construction Projects in China, and the Metron Project in Lesotho won the Excellent Infrastructure Award and the Excellent International Project Award from the American Engineering Management Association.

Hunan enterprises fulfill their social responsibilities, strive to cultivate a large number of skilled talents for the local area, and participate in the construction of local supporting facilities. The Lesotho Metron Dam project has provided over 700 job opportunities for the local community and trained over 600 professionals with various professional skills. During the implementation of the Ghana Bouvet Hydroelectric Power Station project, the self built construction site hospital of the Eighth Bureau of Water and Electricity provided over 50000 free consultations for local villagers, and donated facilities such as hospitals and schools to new immigrant villages. It has been praised by the International Labour Organization as a model for Chinese enterprises to fulfill social responsibilities in Africa.