The Minister of Water Resources, Mr Suleman Adamu, said this while briefing the State House correspondents on the outcome of the FEC meeting presided over by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo.
He described the project as one of the ministry’s flagship projects, adding that it would be completed and put to use in 12 months.
“Today we got approval for the augmentation of money to finish the flagship project for the ministry, the Kashimbila Dam and Hydro power project.
“I say it is flagship because it is the single biggest and most expensive project that we have under the ministry.
“This is a project that is sited in Taraba State.
“It was identified by UN agency as one of the key projects that we need to do to provide a buffer against flooding along the River Benue, which of cause you remember in 2012 was quite devastating.
“And of cause flood around the River Benue has always been a recurring decimal in view of the dam’s that have been constructed by Cameroun which when water is released uncontrollably has continued to cause a lot of damage”.
The minister said that the buffer dam project in Kashibila was started in 2007 and the ministry had attained 90 per cent completion.
The minister said that the dam was impounded in February while the ministry expected that it would reach its full supply level between May and June and also be ready for inauguration.
According to him the power plant aspect is ready.
Adamu said the ministry would wait for the Ministry of Power to complete the transmission line for the evacuation of the 40 megawatts from Kashimbila to some parts of Taraba and Benue States.
He added that the project had a water treatment plant for the water supply component whose transmission pipeline had been completed with all the electro-mechanical equipment on ground as the civil work was already completed.
“This project has gone through three of four different reviews for various reasons, but this is the final review and we hope that within the next 12 months the project will be completed 100 per cent.
“The project also has a landing strip for emergency evacuation and also for access to the dam site because it is in a very remote location of Taraba.
“So we got an augmentation of N46.15 billion that will be enough; already out of this, probably about N24 billion has already been spent by the contractor,’’ he said.
The minister explained that the contractor has done more work than the actual augmentation.
He added that the ministry had received commitment from the contractor that there would be no further review.
Adamu added that then conractor aldo pledged to complete the project in 12 months.
The minister said that FEC also considered the 116 projects which the administration inherited and had plans to complete in line with the Water Resources roadmap.
Also, the FCT minister, Malam Belo Mohammad, said that FEC considered the project for the augmentation of infrastructure in Karu Phase II.
He said Karu was one of the Satellite towns of FCT with many residents.
“The project is the extension of road network, rehabilitation of 31 different roads (short spans of roads) in five sectors of the area.
“That is the Karu village extension itself, the Red Brick Estate, the Primus Hospital/the Orphanage and the Karu Hospital, as well as the police station and the road opposite the EFCC Training centre and then the FHA Phase two Estate.’’
Mohammad said that the essence of the project was to provide infrastructure for better access and movement for the population in Karu area and FCT.
According to him, the FCT expects that the completion of the project in 15 months for N2.6 billion would enhance the value of property in the area.
He said it was also to replicate the standard of infrastructure that the administration put in the Abuja city itself.
“All this is part of the administration’s programme of encouraging investments in the satellite towns so that the pressure on the city itself can be eased.
“Then, wherever a person stays within the territory one can have the comfort and benefit of feeling that one is part and parcel of Abuja,” he added.
