Memory of the day: Celebrations held for completing 1st phase of Egypt’s High Dam in 1964

CAIRO – 16 May 2021: On May 16, many important events took place.

1964 - Celebrations were held for completing the first phase of the High Dam in Egypt.

2002 - Al-Ahly club defeated Zamalek with a score of 6 – 1.

The High Dam is a national project that was previously submitted to more than one Egyptian government before the July 1952 revolution, with no response or promise to discuss the project and its economic feasibility. 

In 1953, the project was submitted to the Revolutionary Command Council. This time, it received great attention from the revolutionary leadership. Wing leader Gamal Salem, a member of the Revolutionary Command Council, was assigned the responsibility of the project, along with technicians in specialized councils and entities that conducted research and case study. 

This is what was mentioned in the book "Years and Days with Gamal Abdel Nasser," a testimony of Sami Sharaf, director of Abdel Nasser’s office at the time. 

Jan. 9 marks the day Gamal Abdel Nasser laid the foundation stone for the construction of the High Dam after the Soviet Union lent the Egyptian Government at the time an amount of $100 million, while the World Bank refused to finance the construction of the dam. 

In the coming lines, ET reviews information about the dam, according to Sami Sharaf: 

* Thinking of the project started at the end of 1952 - by Greek-Egyptian engineer Daninius. 

* The project started on January 9, 1960. 

* The first phase ended in mid-May 1964 with the diversion of the river's water into the diversion channel. 

* In mid-October 1967, the dam's body rose to a level of 172 meters. The first spark was launched from the High Dam power station on January 9, 1969, by running three turbines. 

* In July 1970, the project was completed with 12 turbines. 

* The cost of building the High Dam reached L.E 400 million. 

* The high dam is made of granite, marble, sand and silt with a silky clay from Aswan. 

* The dam closes the course of the river on a 7-kilometer stretch to the south of the old Aswan Dam diverting the water into a new course which is an open channel with six tunnels connected to a power station equipped with 12 units. 

* Lake Nasser has a capacity of 164 billion cubic meters, of which 30 billion cubic meters accommodate the tonnage after its sediment accumulated for several centuries, 37 billion cubic meters face high floods, and 97 billion cubic meters represent the live capacity of the tank, which includes a fixed annual disposal amount, 84 billion cubic meters. From this amount, 55.5 billion cubic meters belong to Egypt, 18.5 billion cubic meters belong to Sudan, and the remaining 10 billion cubic meters are estimated to be lost from the reservoir basin through evaporation and leakage. 

* The width of the river course at the site of the dam is 520 meters. 

* The length of the dam at the peak point is 3820 meters. 

* The maximum height of the dam is 111 meters. 

* The dam's base width is 980 meters. 

* The width of the road over the dam is 40 meters.