—with completion of Khubelu and Mabunyaneng bridges
Leemisa Thuseho
THE Lesotho Highlands Development Authority (LHDA) has officially opened the Khubelu and Mabunyaneng bridges in Mapholaneng, Mokhotlong to mark another milestone of the Phase II of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP).
The two bridges bring to three the number of major bridges completed under LHWP Phase II, following the earlier completion of the biggest of the three, the Senqu Bridge.
The official opening of the Khubelu and Mabunyaneng bridges was held on Friday and officiated by the Minister of Natural Resources, Mohlomi Moleko. He was accompanied by South Africa’s Minister of Water and Sanitation, Pemmy Majodina.
The Khubelu Bridge, the second-largest of the three, has a 270-metre curved deck comprising nine 30-metre spans, supported by eight piers and two abutments. It stands approximately 25 metres above the valley floor and required 63 precast beams, each weighing 52 tonnes.
The Mabunyaneng Bridge is 120 metres long, with four 30-metre spans supported by three piers and two abutments, standing 12 metres above the ground. It required 28 precast beams, each weighing 52 tonnes.
The bridge is also distinguished by a 190-metre-long, nine-metre-high mechanically stabilised earth retaining wall, constructed from more than 700 reinforced earth panels.
The design and construction supervision consultant was Zutari, formerly Aurecon Lesotho (Pty) Ltd, supported by White Life Consultants (Pty) Ltd of Lesotho and Leporogo Specialist Engineers CC of South Africa.
Construction was undertaken by the Concor-Nthane Brothers M&K Bridges JV, comprising Concor Construction (Pty) Ltd of South Africa and Nthane Brothers (Pty) Ltd of Lesotho, with Post Tensioning and Structural Solutions (Pty) Ltd and Bridge Joints and Rehabilitation Contractors (Pty) Ltd as subcontractors.
The construction contract was valued at M511.5 million, excluding CPA and VAT.
LHDA Chief Executive Tente Tente said the bridges were not built merely for admiration but to improve connectivity for communities in the area.
“These bridges were not built to be admired from a distance,” Tente said.
“They were built so that a pupil in Mapholaneng can reach school, a farmer can reach a market, and an ambulance can reach a household, in every season and at every reservoir level.
“The engineering is exacting and it deserves the recognition. But the measure that matters most to us is whether the communities of Mokhotlong are better connected after this project than before. On that measure, together with the Senqu Bridge, we can say the commitment made to these communities has been kept.”
Minister Moleko praised the quality of the bridges, saying their completion represented an important milestone in ensuring that communities retain safe and reliable connectivity.
“This is important because Lesotho regards reservoir crossings and associated access routes as critical for community connectivity, access to services, and economic opportunities,” he said.
However, Moleko expressed concern that the major infrastructure achievements under Phase II had not been matched by substantial livelihood and social development projects for communities affected by the project.
“While I am pleased to open these impressive bridges today, I must also place on record an issue that concerns me deeply. We have opened major physical infrastructure under Phase II, but we are yet to celebrate with the same zeal and prominence the opening of substantial livelihoods or social development projects that directly mitigate the impacts of Phase II on project-affected people. I am not satisfied with the situation.”
“I would like the next major official opening under Phase II to be an opening of the livelihoods or social development projects that directly respond to the needs of the project-affected people. We need sustainable programmes capable of creating long-term employment rather than opportunities that disappear when construction ends,” Moleko said.
Majodina also stressed the importance of restoring the livelihoods of people who have been forced to relocate because of the project.
“People who have to leave their homes for the construction of the dam relocated to proper places because they sacrificed for Lesotho to have these beautiful dams,” Majodina said.
She said the bridges would improve connectivity and contribute to economic growth.
Majodina also said South Africa, together with relevant authorities, had started preparing for the country to receive increased water capacity from Lesotho by 2030.
“South Africa has already started preparing its facilities which will welcome and purify the water once it arrives before being distributed to the communities to make sure South Africans have enough water,” she said.
The LHWP is a bi-national water resource management project governed by the 1986 Treaty between Lesotho and South Africa. It harnesses water resources from the Lesotho Highlands through a series of dams and tunnels, transferring water to South Africa while generating hydropower for Lesotho.
Phase I, completed in 2003 and commissioned in 2004, delivered the Katse and Mohale dams, the ’Muela Hydropower Station and more than 100 kilometres of tunnels.
Phase II, governed by the Phase II Agreement signed in 2011 and fully ratified in 2013, is currently underway. Its main water-transfer infrastructure comprises the 165-metre Polihali Dam and the 38-kilometre Polihali Transfer Tunnel, supported by roads, bridges, telecommunications and bulk power networks, accommodation, housing, a commercial centre and an operations centre, as well as socio-economic and environmental programmes.
Phase II will increase water transfers to South Africa incrementally from 780 million cubic metres a year to 1.27 billion cubic metres a year, while increasing output from the ’Muela Hydropower Station by approximately 50 percent, further supporting Lesotho’s energy independence and reducing reliance on imported electricity.