UPDATE 1-Ethiopia to start producing energy at Grand Renaissance dam at end of 2020

Ethiopia will start energy production at the Grand Renaissance dam in December 2020, the water and energy minister said on Thursday.

"750 megawatts is the planned initial production with two turbines," Seleshi Bekele told parliament. He said the government expected the dam to be fully operational by the end of 2022.

The 6,000-megawatt Grand Renaissance Dam is the centrepiece of Ethiopia's bid to become Africa's biggest power exporter.

The minister's announcement is the first update on construction by a senior government official since Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in August cancelled the contract of a state-run military conglomerate, Metals and Engineering Corporation (METEC), to build the dam's turbines.

Abiy said at the time that not a single turbine was operational more than seven years after the government awarded the contract to METEC. (Reporting by Aaron Maasho; Writing by Maggie Fick; Editing by Alexandra Zavis and Mark Potter)

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