The Volta River Authority (VRA) has unveiled plans to renovate the 160-megawatt Kpong Dam and its spillway gates in Akuse, Eastern Region. This marks the dam’s first major rehabilitation since its construction 40 years ago.
The announcement came during a stakeholder engagement meeting with chiefs, assembly members, and community leaders from Akuse, Torgome, Fodzoku, Natriku, and surrounding areas.
The meeting provided an opportunity to address community concerns and discuss measures to manage both the positive and potential adverse effects of the renovation.
Kwaku Wiafe, VRA’s Director of Engineering Services, highlighted that the primary goal of the renovation is to stabilize the dam’s rock-filled dyke, which has experienced erosion and wear from years of wave impact.
“Since the dam at Akuse only permits water from Akosombo to pass and if the water is coming from Akosombo, the spillway must be prepared to allow it to pass, otherwise it will overtop it, which is why we must ensure that our spillways are extremely dependable in light of climate change and other issues,” he said.
He added, “So the reliability of the spillways is critical to the dam’s safety, and by improving the stability and the reliability of the spillways, the overall safety of the dam is enhanced, which goes a long way towards protecting both downstream communities and ensuring that the asset’s integrity is maintained so that Ghanaians can continue to benefit from a reliable power supply.”
Mr Wiafe also announced that the VRA would rehabilitate the deteriorating 10-kilometre road from Okwenya Junction to Akuse, transforming it into a first-class road to better support haulage trucks and other vehicles.
He noted that this decision followed requests from VRA staff, residents, and motorists.
Some community members expressed concerns regarding the potential impacts on fish species and water quality.
However, in response, Mr. Wiafe assured that the construction work would avoid polluting the water and would not disrupt fishing activities.
“The way and manner the work will be done won’t cause water pollution. Fishing will not be affected as we won’t use the fishing landing sites, and haulage trucks will adhere to a 15-kilometer-per-hour speed limit,” he clarified.
He also promised regular watering off the road to minimise dust.
In a presentation, Emmanuel Darko Thompson, a civil engineer at VRA, noted that the project would focus on restoring both the upstream dykes and the spillway gates, emphasising that the aim was not to replace but to restore the corroded gates.
“We plan to use 150,000 cubic meters of rock to reinforce the dykes,” he said.
He warned of the potential nationwide impact if the dam’s dykes were to fail, affecting productivity and economic growth.
Ibrahim Mahama, assembly member for Akuse, appealed to the VRA to consider extending the road rehabilitation to reach Asutuare.