Loading grant details…
Chinese Government provides an interest-free loan for the Kébir River Dam Construction Project
| Funder | China Ministry of Commerce |
|---|---|
| Recipient Organization | Government of Tunisia |
| Country | Tunisia |
| Start Date | Mar 09, 2004 |
| End Date | Sep 26, 2028 |
| Duration | 8,967 days |
| Number of Grantees | 1 |
| Roles | Recipient |
| Data Source | AidData Chinese Aid |
| Grant ID | 56040 |
Grant Description
Chinese Government provides an interest-free loan for the Kébir River Dam Construction Project On March 9, 2004 and March 10, 2004, the Chinese Government and the Government of Tunisia signed an exchange of letters, which committed an interest-free loan for the Kébir River Dam Construction Project.
Then, on April 8, 2004, the Tunisian Parliament passed a law, approving the interest-free loan.
In addition to the Chinese Government, the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development provided a $28 million loan for this project in 2000.
The primary purpose of this project was to construct a dam on the Kébir River near the town of Tabarka (Dabarka) within the Gafsa Governorate (ولاية قفصة) to address irrigation and residential water shortages in the region.
It consisted of 3 components: the construction of a clay core rockfill dam (with water storage capacity of 64 million cubic meters), the construction of a spillway tunnel, and the construction of a water pipeline. The dam was designed to be 70 meters high and 10 meters wide. Its crest was designed to be 560 meters long.
Upon completion, the dam was designed to transport 35 million cubic meters of water per year to the Sidi Barrak Reservoir and reduce the risk of flooding within the Gafsa Governorate. China International Water & Electric Corporation (CWE) was the contractor responsible for implementation.
Tunisia's Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, as the owner of the dam, was the ultimate beneficiary of this project and provided implementation support.
CONCEPT S.A., a Tunisian consulting company, assisted in the creation of the preliminary, design plans, and tender documents, as well as supervised the work and provided technical assistance to commissioning. Construction began on January 1, 2003. At the time, the project had a timeline of 45 months; it was expected to be completed by the end of 2005.
The project was nearing completion in January 2007.
However, it experienced major delays due to domestic political unrest in Tunisia, construction material shortages, price increases, and technical capacity constraints among local construction firms. The Government of Tunisia repeatedly extended the required completion deadline of the project amidst the delays.
CWE signed another project implementation contract (worth $16.65 million) on January 31, 2012.
As of February 2015, the project had achieved a 26% completion rate and its new expected completion date was April 2016.
According to the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, this project was completed some time before the end of 2017.
Staff Comments
- This project is also known as the Kebir Dam Construction Project, the Wadi Al-Kabir Dam Construction Project, and the Kebir-Gafsa Barrage Project. The French project title is Barrage Kébir or La réalisation du barrage El Kébir du gouvernorat de Gafsa. The Chinese project title is 克比尔加夫萨水坝项目 or 加夫萨省埃尔.克比尔河水坝项目 or 突尼斯克比尔-加夫萨水坝 or 突尼斯克比尔. The Arabic project title is سد الكبير.
- The loan that supported this project is not included in the database of Chinese loan commitments that SAIS-CARI published in July 2020.
- China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) has been coded as the specific Chinese Government institution responsible for financing this project because the vast majority of interest-free loans are provided by it.
- Since the borrowings terms for the loan are unavailable, AidData has set maturity period to 20-years by default and grace period to 10-years by default, per China's Foreign Assistance White Paper (http://www.cidca.gov.cn/2018-08/06/c_129925064_3.htm), which states that the maturity of a MOFCOM interest-free loan is 20-years, with a drawdown period of 5-years, grace period of 5-years, and repayment over 10-years. AidData treats the drawdown period as providing 5-years of additional grace.
Sources & References
- 突尼斯克比尔水坝和马代尔管道项目获最终验收
- 中国驻突尼斯大使考察公司在建大坝工程
- 刘大使视察克比尔水坝和齐亚迪尼水坝工程
- 公司参加“中国－突尼斯合作论坛”
- 陆国俊总经理考察突尼斯、摩洛哥、阿尔及利亚三国
- 突尼斯议会批准中突两国签署的两项合作协定
- 中、突两国政府签署我帮助建设突尼斯加夫萨省埃尔.克比尔河水坝项目立项换文
- 中水公司在突尼斯克比尔大坝工程元旦开工
- Annual Report 2017
- Kebir Dam
- Tunisia
- Barrage Kébir
- Dabarka
- Tunisia
- AFESD SIGNS LOAN AGREEMENT WITH TUNISIA
- 第十二章 对突尼斯经济援助
- 中、突两国政府签署我帮助建设突尼斯加夫萨省埃尔.克比尔河水坝项目立项换文
- 突尼斯克比尔加夫萨大坝项目主合同正式签署
- 突尼斯加夫萨市克比尔水坝工程渗流分析和设计特点
- 突尼斯农业部长视察克比尔加夫萨水坝项目
- Chinese Loans to Africa Database, 【视觉三峡】三峡之歌在唱响·非洲篇
- 中国驻突尼斯大使馆边燕花大使到访突尼斯经理部
- KEBIR GAFSA DAM : DETAILED ENGINEERING STUDY AND SUPERVISION
- REGION OF MANOUBA - TUNISIA
- Décret n° 2013-4116 du 18 septembre 2013, portant modification du décret n° 2005-1302 du 26 avril 2005, portant création d'une unité de gestion par objectifs pour la réalisation du barrage El Kébir du gouvernorat de Gafsa et fixant son organisation et les modalités de son fonctionnement.
- Tunisie – Infrastructures – Gafsa : Le taux de réalisation du barrage Oued El Kébir s’élève à 26%
- Tunisie – Infrastructures – Gafsa: Le taux de réalisation du barrage Oued El Kébir s’élève à 26%
- Tunisia Kebir Dam Project
- TUNISIA : Agriculture-Status of Projects as at 31/12/2020 Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.
All Grantees
Government of Tunisia
Interested in applying for this grant?
Complete our application form to express your interest and we'll guide you through the process.
Apply for This GrantQuick Summary
Related Grants
