The transmission lines will enable the connection of Gilgel Gibe III hydropower project, located on the Omo River, to the national grid.
To finance the construction, the Chinese Export-Import (EXIM) bank has agreed to provide $96.7m, while the Ethiopian government will offer ETB$257.5 ($14m), reported allAfrica.
Transmission lines, scheduled for completion in two phases, will carry electricity from three distribution stations located at the facility.
A Chinese company has been contracted for the construction of the transmission lines and the work is expected to be completed within a month. So far, 89% of the work has been completed.
The transmission lines will begin operations once power is generated from the dam.
Development at Gilgel Gibe III was initiated in 2006, to allow for a maximum capacity of 1,870MW.
The project is expected to contribute to the country’s power generation capacity and is the second largest hydro electric facility after the 6,000MW Grand Renaissance Dam.
Ethiopia seeks to increase power generation capacity from the current 2,000MW to 10,000MW during the 2010-2011 to 2014-2015 Growth & Transformation Plan (GTP) period.
