Dam Downsides

Dam downsides | New Scientist

27/02/2016, 08:45

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Home | Letters

Published 12 June 2013

Dam downsides From Bent Flyvbjerg, Atif Ansar and Alexander Budzier, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

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Optimism about building a giant dam on the river Congo is unwarranted (23 May). The “bad news” is not only that “few Congolese will get any electricity”, as Fred Pearce reports, but that the costs are likely to be so high that the project is unviable. Research at the University of Oxford, based on data from 245 big dams, finds they often come in over budget and late. On average, they cost 90 per cent more than expected. The proposed $9-billion first phase of the Congo dam is likely to cost double that, and even more if the effects of inflation and debt servicing are taken into account. A repeat of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s debt crisis of recent years is possible. Costs aside, mega-dams take a long time to build. Even if work begins in 2015, it will most likely take eight to 10 years to complete – too late to solve today’s pressing energy needs. Smaller projects that can be more easily adapted to social and environmental concerns are preferable.

See the Oxford study on dams here: http://bit.ly/1dLMNTf

https://www.newscientist.com/letter/mg21829210-600-dam-downsides/

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Dam downsides | New Scientist

27/02/2016, 08:45

Magazine issue 2921 published 15 June 2013

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