Sri Lanka has appointed a group of German consultants to undertake the feasibility studies on the Moragahakanda multi-purpose project. The Kuwait Fund for Economic Development (KFED) is funding the feasibility studies. KFED has also agreed to grant 8M Kuwaiti dinars for preliminary work on the reservoir.
The Moragahakanda project will involve the construction of a dam across the Amban Ganga, a branch of the Mahaweli river in northern Sri Lanka. The earth dam will be constructed near Elahera, 2km upstream of the Elahera Anicut, an ancient river diversion structure. The surface area of the reservoir which will be created by the proposed dam will extend up to the tailwater level of the existing Bowatenna power house, downstream of the Bowatenna diversion dam built in the 1970s. In addition to supplementing the irrigation needs of existing lands, the project is also capable of supplying water to 62,200ha of new land as well as supplying 60MW of hydro power.