A set of satellite images, published by Professor Abbas Sharaki, a water resources expert at Cairo University, has revealed an increase in the water level of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) lake. Sharaki stated on his Facebook page that the images show the lake's level reaching 565 meters, approximately half a meter higher than last week. He estimated that the volume of rainwater and discharge from Lake Tana, which is currently flowing into the GERD, is around 150 million cubic meters, with about 50-60 million cubic meters passing through the two openings while the remainder is retained due to the raising of the central corridor's concrete structure.
He mentioned that the rainfall inflow to the dam is expected to gradually increase, reaching over 600 million cubic meters daily in August. He added, "The amount of water that has increased this week is approximately 250 million cubic meters compared to last week, bringing the lake volume to about 4.25 billion cubic meters. It reached 4.9 billion cubic meters last August, with the lake's edges showing a lighter color due to a retreat after the two gates were opened in mid-April, which has begun to constrict in some areas, such as those within the white rectangle, this week."
He pointed out that the lake level would surpass what was achieved last year by the beginning of next week, marking the initiation of this year’s actual storage, despite a decrease from 13.5 billion to less than 4 billion cubic meters. Nevertheless, this scenario remains unacceptable to Egypt and Sudan, and necessary measures are being taken through the Security Council.
