Hydro-politics and hydro-power: the century-long saga of the Inga project

Gottschalk, Keith

doi:10.1080/00083968.2016.1222297

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…Eleven teams expressed an interest in the construction of the first dam, Inga 3 (GCR1). British aluminum smelter BHP Billiton, one of the frontrunners for the construction of the new Inga, pulled out a year later, without any clear reasons cited [32,33]. In 2012, negotiations were then escalated to presidential level between the DRC and South Africa (SA) [33]; neighbouring countries grew eager to reap a portion of the dam's potential energy.…”

Section: Grand Inga In Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This bid apparently has been accepted and the Congolese Energy Minister Kapandji bullishly announced construction is to commence this year and to be completed in 2025 [41]. Analysts, however, claim 2030s-2040s is the best possible envisioned date for the remaining five stages of Grand Inga [33]. A grid capable of transferring energy to the Congolese population is yet to be built.…”

Section: Grand Inga In Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By assisting the DRC, it is showing its gracious generosity to its developing neighbour. In the trade balance across the Southern African regional development community, SADC, the balance of payments favours SA ten-to-one [33].…”

Section: Desire and The Fruits Of Fantasymentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Fantasy of the Grand Inga Hydroelectric Project on the River Congo

Warner

Jomantas

Jones

et al. 2019

Water

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The Congo River is the deepest in the world and second-longest in Africa. Harnessing its full hydropower potential has been an ongoing development dream of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and its more powerful regional allies. If completed, the Grand Inga complex near Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC, will be the largest dam project in the world. Its eight separate dams (Inga 1–8) are envisioned to be “lighting up and powering Africa”. Opponents claim, however, that the rewards will be outsourced to corporate mining interests rather than meeting the needs of the local population, and that the project is flawed economically, socially and environmentally. The planned construction of the Inga dams and associated infrastructure has been stuck in limbo since it was mooted in the 1960s; a fantasy rather than a reality. This article attempts to analyse the rivalry underlying the Grand Inga scheme beyond the “pro” and “contra” reports. Embracing Lacanian psychoanalysis and triangulating multiple sources, we seek to unmask Grand Inga as a potent fantasy. Whilst exhibiting its purpose to serve as a screen to protect both proponents of and opponents to the dam from encountering their own self-deception, we conclude the scheme to be at its most powerful whilst the dream remains unfulfilled.

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Section: Grand Inga In Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Grand Inga In Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Fantasy of the Grand Inga Hydroelectric Project on the River Congo

Warner

Jomantas

Jones

et al. 2019

Water

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“…But while this dam resurgence is provably underway (Lempérière & ICOLD, 2006;Hwang et al, 2015;Ahlers et al, 2015;Dye, 2018), many of its resurrected or newly created projects have not reached construction. This is notable in Myanmar, where activists have blocked building efforts (Kiik, 2016;Kirchherr et al, 2017), and in Democratic Republic of Congo's Inga dam sites, where technical concerns and difficulties in assembling finance have halted progress (Showers, 2009;Gottschalk, 2016). Similarly, activists in Brazil and India have stalled particular projects (see, respectively, Khagram, 2004;and Mawdsley, 2005;Watts, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Holds Back Dam Building? The Role of Brazil in the Stagnation of Dams in Tanzania

Dye

2020

SSRN Journal

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Across Africa, a number of major dam projects have been resurrected, often with the backing of the so-called emerging powers. However, many are yet to reach construction and are stuck in the early phases of implementation, with studies ongoing. This paper examines this issue in Tanzania, where eight dam projects were pursued between 2005 and 2017 yet only one reached construction. Beyond the literature on anti-dam activists, there is little analysis of the more technical, financial and policy-making processes that cause such stalling of dam projects. Therefore, this paper focuses on the Brazilian government and two companies, Odebrecht and Queiroz Galvão, as the international enablers of two dams in Tanzania, the Stiegler's Gorge and Mnyera projects. It demonstrates the significance of two drivers in undermining these dams construction. One was the inconsistency resulting from Brazil's heavily presidential foreign policy that oscillated from strong support for Africa relations and infrastructure projects between 2010-2012, to a withdrawal of diplomatic and financial support since. The second driver was the degree to which Brazilian governmental and private sector actors misread Tanzanian politics, not understanding the degree of fragmentation in the ruling party and how this affected policymaking. These two factors help explain why the widespread resurrection of dam projects has not entailed an equal boom in dam construction. Additionally, the paper makes a secondary contribution to understanding the factors behind the collapse in Brazil-Africa relations over the last decade, particularly beyond a core group of Lusophone countries.

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The role of the state in Sino-Ghanaian relations: The case of Bui hydroelectric dam

Amo-Agyemang

2021

Cogent Social Sciences

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Hydro-politics and hydro-power: the century-long saga of the Inga project

Cited by 4 publications

References 8 publications

The Fantasy of the Grand Inga Hydroelectric Project on the River Congo

The Fantasy of the Grand Inga Hydroelectric Project on the River Congo

What Holds Back Dam Building? The Role of Brazil in the Stagnation of Dams in Tanzania

The role of the state in Sino-Ghanaian relations: The case of Bui hydroelectric dam

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