The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (AFP)

According to the draft resolution, this binding agreement should "ensure Ethiopia's ability to produce hydroelectric power from the Renaissance Dam, while simultaneously preventing significant damage to the water security of the downstream countries."

Egypt had reaffirmed to the Russian and Chinese sides "the need for the Security Council to play its role in the issue of the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam," hours before an upcoming session of the Council at the request of Cairo and Khartoum to discuss disputes with Addis Ababa over the project.

After receiving a request from Sudan and Egypt, the Presidency of the UN Security Council announced holding a session on the matter tomorrow, Thursday. Cairo also submitted an official letter complaining about Ethiopia and declaring its objection to it taking a unilateral decision on the second filling.

It is noteworthy that since 2011, Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia have been negotiating an agreement on filling and operating the Renaissance Dam. The project, built by Addis Ababa, is set to become the largest source of hydroelectric power in Africa, with an expected capacity of 6,500 megawatts.

At a time Egypt and Sudan urged Ethiopia to postpone its plans to fill the dam’s reservoir until a comprehensive agreement was reached, Addis Ababa announced, on July 21, 2020, that it had completed the first phase of filling the reservoir with a capacity of 4.9 billion cubic meters.