Addis Ababa: Ethiopia on Monday formally inaugurated the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), a project hailed at home as a symbol of national pride and a new chapter in the country’s development. Rising on the Blue Nile after more than a decade of construction, the $5 billion dam is now the largest hydropower facility in Africa. While only two turbines are currently in operation, producing about 750 megawatts, the plant is expected to reach its full capacity of 5,150 MW in the coming years, transforming Ethiopia’s energy landscape.
For many Ethiopians, the completion of the GERD represents both progress and unity. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared the inauguration a historic moment, noting that the dam will dramatically increase electricity access for the nation’s 120 million people, while also enabling Ethiopia to export surplus energy to neighboring states. The government has portrayed the project as a turning point that will light homes, power industries, and anchor the country’s economic growth in the decades ahead.
However, the celebration in Addis Ababa was met with deep concern in Cairo. Egypt, which depends on the Nile for nearly 90 percent of its freshwater needs, has consistently warned that the GERD poses a direct threat to its survival. Egyptian authorities argue that Ethiopia’s unilateral actions particularly in filling the massive reservoir could disrupt water flows during droughts, endangering agriculture and livelihoods. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry described the dam’s launch as a violation of international norms and vowed to take “all appropriate measures” to defend the country’s water rights.
Sudan, meanwhile, remains caught between opportunity and risk. Khartoum has highlighted potential benefits from the project, such as flood control and cheaper electricity imports, yet it continues to push for a binding agreement on how the dam will be operated. Both Egypt and Sudan have repeatedly urged Ethiopia to enter into a legally enforceable accord, but talks have largely stalled, with little progress toward a compromise.
Ethiopian leaders have insisted that the dam is not designed to harm downstream nations. They stress that the GERD will regulate water flows more predictably and prevent flooding, while ensuring that the Nile continues to sustain all riparian countries. Officials in Addis Ababa frame the project as a sovereign right, emphasizing that Ethiopia should be able to harness its own resources to drive development without external interference.
Central to this dispute is the dam’s immense reservoir, now called Nigat Lake or the “Lake of Dawn.” With a storage capacity exceeding 74 billion cubic meters comparable in scale to Egypt’s Lake Nasser it covers more than 1,800 square kilometers across Ethiopia’s western highlands. For Ethiopia, it is a monument of self-reliance; for Egypt, it is a looming challenge to water security.
The inauguration of the GERD is therefore both a moment of national triumph and a flashpoint in regional geopolitics. While Ethiopia celebrates a dawn of electrification and development, the tensions downstream highlight unresolved questions of equity, cooperation, and survival along one of the world’s most vital rivers. Without a comprehensive water-sharing agreement, the dam risks becoming not only a generator of power but also a source of enduring friction across the Nile Basin.