The Caluequee Dam, is an operational multipurpose dam across the

Kunene River The Cunene (Portuguese spelling) or Kunene (common Namibian spelling) is a river in Southern Africa. It flows from the Angola highlands south to the border with Namibia. It then flows west along the border until it reaches the Atlantic Ocean. It ...

, in Kunene Province, in southwestern

Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

. The dam stores water for the

Ruacana Hydroelectric Power Station The Ruacana Hydroelectric Power Station is a hydroelectric power plant near Ruacana in northwest Namibia, close to the Angolan border. Commissioned in 1978, it is by far the largest power station in Namibia. Its operator is NamPower, the Namibi ...

, in neighboring

Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and e ...

. Its waters are also used for the irrigation of farmland, both in Angola and Namibia.

Location

The dam is located in the town of

Calueque Calueque is a town next to a dam and pumping station of the same name on the Kunene River in the Kunene Province of southern Angola. The water project is linked to Ruacana, away in Namibia, where the Ruacana Power Station is. This dam is one of ...

, close to the international border with Namibia, approximately , by road, southwest of the town of Ondjiva, the provincial capital. The dam is approximately , by road, south of

Luanda Luanda () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city in Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major Angola#Economy, industrial, Angola#Culture, cultural and Angola#Demographics, urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atl ...

, the capital city of Angola. The geographical coordinates of Calueque Dam are 17°16'22.0"S, 14°32'40.0"E (Latitude:-17.272778; Longitude:14.544444).

History

In October 1964, representatives of the

government of Portugal The Government of Portugal is one of the four sovereignty bodies of the Portuguese Republic, together with the President of the Republic, the Assembly of the Republic and the courts. It is both the body of sovereignty that conducts the general p ...

and the

government of South Africa The Republic of South Africa is a parliamentary republic with three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judicia ...

met in

Lisbon, Portugal Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administrative limits w ...

and signed agreements relating to the construction of dams on the Kunene River, thereby controlling the rate of flow of the river and maximizing electricity output at the dams. The agreements also related to maximizing the availability of water for use by humans and animals in Angola and

South West Africa South West Africa ( af, Suidwes-Afrika; german: Südwestafrika; nl, Zuidwest-Afrika) was a territory under South African administration from 1915 to 1990, after which it became modern-day Namibia. It bordered Angola ( Portuguese colony before ...

(now Namibia). The agreements spelt out who owned what and who would construct, operate and pay for (a) ''Gove Dam'' (b) ''Calueque Dam'' and the associated Gove Hydroelectric Power Station and the

. Construction of the Calueque Dam started in 1972. Work on the dam was abandoned in 1976 due to the

Angolan Civil War The Angolan Civil War ( pt, Guerra Civil Angolana) was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war immediately began after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. The war wa ...

. At the time construction stopped in 1976, approximately 70 percent of the civil works had been completed and the dam could provide some water for human and animal use. In 1988, "an attack" severely damaged the incomplete structure.

Repairs and optimization

In 2012, repairs and refurbishment of the partially complete dam commenced. Rehabilitation work was concluded in 2015. Other optimization work includes the rehabilitation of the canal carrying water for human and animal use, from the dam at Calueque, Angola to

Oshakati Oshakati is a town in northern Namibia. It is the regional capital of the Oshana Region and one of Namibia's largest places. Oshakati was founded in July 1966 and proclaimed a town in 1992. The town was used as a base of operations by the S ...

, Namibia, measuring .

References

External links

Upgrading dam infrastructure in Angola
As of 11 March 2014. {{Authority control Dams in Angola Cunene Province Energy infrastructure completed in 2015 2015 establishments in Angola

Location

History

Repairs and optimization

See also

References

External links