One of the colossal engineering projects, described by the international experts as an engineering miracle which is unprecedented in the 20th century.
the High Dam is a rock-fill dam, of 42 million cubic meters volume. Its body incorporates a vertical grant curtain of impermeable material which prevents the seepage of water. The width of the curtain at base is 60 meters, and 10 meters at the crest. The width of the dam, itself, at its base is 980 meters. Its total length is four kilometers and its height above the bed level is 111 meters. A road of 40 meters wide runs along the top of the Dam.
The hourly rate of blasting and rock transport reached 3000tons/hour.
The High Dam surpasses other dams of the world in its reservoir capacity. The area of the reservoir is 5000 square kilometers and extends over a distance of 500km east of the Dam. The capacity of the reservoir is 157 million cubic meters of water, which is sufficient to expand the arable land in Egypt by 1.3million acres of basin irrigated lands to perennial irrigation.
The project, which employed 34000 persons, 50% of whom were technicians, has resulted in L.E. 234 millions increase in national income, per annum.
the Tunnels
The middle part of the canal on which the body of the Dam is erected comprised six tunnels. Each in the form of a huge tube cut into the rock with a circular section, 15m diam. And 300m long lined with reinforced concrete one meter thick.
the inlet of the tunnel consists of two openings on each.
Each tunnel branches out, before its end, into two channels each linking up with one of the turbines of the generating power-station.
The volume of excavations in the tunnels reached 650.000 cubic meters. The volume of concrete used 525.000 cbic meters. The total weight of the gates is 10500 tons of steel.
The Diversion Canal
The 1950 meter long Diversion Canal situated at the east bank of the Nile, is one of the largest artificial canals dug in the world.
Its capacity is practically equal to that of the Nile which is 100 million cubic meters per day. The volume of digging the diversion canals reached 11 million cubic meters of granite.
The production of electric power from the High Dam is 10 milliard KWH annually, which is double the amount generated in Egypt before the construction of the Dam. Also the dam has rendered an increase in the Aswan generating power station of about one milliard KWH annually.