Four generating units of Grand Poubara Hydropower project all went into operation on August 5, 2013, after 72-hour trial run, with POWERCHINA's subsidiary Sinohydro Corporation as the EPC contractor.
The four generating units showed excellent performance with good indices meeting all design standards. The Hydropower Station, on Ogooue River, come in two phases, with Phase I consisting of 4 generating units of 160MW installed capacity in total and an embankment dam, diversion and power generation system, and transmission and substation system. This is Gabon's largest hydropower station. Construction work on Phase I began on Nov 15, 2008. The cofferdam enclosure was done on November 15, 2011 and the first generating unit was ready to run on December 31, 2012. The whole construction period from commencement to the completion was 56 months, which was faster than expected. The completion was witnessed and praised by the Gabonese government.
The Grand Poubara Hydropower project has two transmission lines, one extending to Franceville, the country's third largest city, 15 kilometers from the project site, the other running to Moanda, the largest manganese mining region in Gabon and in the world. This project is expected to give a great push to the economic and social development of Gabon.
