Lesotho Highlands Water, Lesotho

The Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) involves the construction of a series of dams and tunnels to harness and manage the water resources of the Lesotho highlands. Under Phase I (A and B) impoundment dams were constructed at Katse and Mohale together with interconnecting tunnels in order to store and transfer water to the population centres of Gauteng in South Africa. Transferred water was used to generate electricity to provide for the power demands of Lesotho.

Phase II of the project involved the Polihali Dam - 165m high Concrete Faced Rock Fill Dam (CRFD) at the confluence of the Senqu and Khubelu Rivers in the District of Mochotlong. The Polihai dam will inundate an area of approximately 36 km2. It also involved a 38km long transfer tunnel connecting the proposed Polihale Reservoir with Katse Reservoir and associated access roads including 40km of paved road through mountainous terrain with three major bridges crossing the reservoir.

We were employed by LHDA as technical Advisors. Specific functions we performed include:

• Project Management
• Procurement Support & Implementation Strategy
• Environmental Specialist Services
• Civil engineering Specialist Services
• Strategic Planning of Road Network