The Zungeru hydropower project, located on the Kaduna River in Niger State, Nigeria, is a 700 MW hydroelectric facility built by a Chinese consortium comprising Sinohydro Corporation Limited and China National Electric Engineering Company.
The project, which costs about $1.3bn (₦162.9 billion), is the biggest power project completed in Nigeria in the past 10 years and one of the biggest power projects in Africa to avail preferential loan facility from the Export-Import Bank (Exim Bank) of China.
The project is designed to generate 2,630 GWh of energy with a total installed capacity of 700 MW. The main components of the Zungeru hydropower project include a 2,400m roller-compacted concrete (RCC) gravity feed dam, an underground powerhouse located behind the RCC dam, a tailrace channel, and two switchyards on both banks of the river.
The Zungeru project is estimated to generate 2.64 billion kWh of electricity annually, which will meet close to 10% of Nigeria’s total domestic energy needs. It will also provide flood control, irrigation, as well as water supply and fish breeding facilities.
The construction works on the power plant started in May 2013. The engineering, procurement and construction contract was awarded to a Chinese consortium comprising China National Electric Engineering Company (CNEEC) and Sinohydro. On August 15th 2023, the project was successfully handed over to the Nigeria Government.
The Zungeru hydropower project is a testament to China-Nigeria partnership at its best and it is set to make a significant contribution to Nigeria’s power generation capacity.
