Senqu Bridge of Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) Phase II, reached a major achievement when the casting of the first segment of the deck for the north abutment and the end of the bridge was started.
Project overview
With a length of more than 800m and a height of 90m, Senqu Bridge is one of the three large bridges under construction for the purpose of crossing the Polihali reservoir. Sengu bridge is also the first extradosed bridges of its kind within the Kingdom of Lesotho. It has been done while taking into account the winter weather of the Mokhotline highlands.
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Both sides of the bridge deck are being built progressively with incremental construction from the abutments to reduce work interferences and maximize safety for construction workers. These deck segments comprising of concrete are poured in 25m lengths with the help of shutter molds and then hydraulically jacked out over the gorge to the next deck where they are joined midspan.
The construction contract of the Senqu Bridge was awarded to the WRES Senqu Bridge Joint Venture in August 2022 with a tender price estimate of approximately M2 billion. Consortium members consist of Webuild S. p. A. (Italy), Raubex Construction (South Africa), Enza Construction (South Africa), Sigma Construction (Lesotho) and several sub-contractors from countries like South Africa, Austria, and France was procured.
Construction at the southern bank involves current action on Piers 11 & 14 where concrete supplies are being supplied to the site frequently to ensure construction does not halt. Considering that the performs of the curing time of concrete reduce the sliding rate of the piers in the Lesotho Highlands due to the cold temperatures.
Studies regarding the needed bridge design commenced in the year 2018. Zutari company (previously known as Aurecon Lesotho) directing the process. Zutari also constructed the other two large bridges colored in phase II namely the Mabunyaneng and Khubelu bridges.
Completion date
The construction of Senqu Bridge should be complete in 2026 at the earliest based on the mass of the bridge. Sengu bridge is larger than the Mphorosane Bridge, constructed during phase one of the LHWP [Lesotho Highlands Water Project]. Some of the pertinent infrastructure in Phase II are the Polihali Dam and the Polihali transfer tunnel, these will greatly boost water transfer to South Africa and improve on generation capacity at ‘Muela.
A number of new roads and bridges should still be built to ensure that people are able to gain access and have some forms of connections around the reservoir. Most of the major bridges program is supported by construction of four pedestrian bridges, and six vehicle bridges, which are still in the process of procurement in order to enhance mobility within the community most affected by the reservoir area.
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