Calueque | |
|---|---|
Town | |
| Calueque | |
 | |
| Coordinates:17°16′57″S14°32′5″E / 17.28250°S 14.53472°E /-17.28250; 14.53472 | |
| Country | Angola |
| Province | Kunene Province |
Calueque is a town next to a dam and pumping station of the same name on theKunene River in theKunene Province of southernAngola. The water project is linked toRuacana, 20 km (12 mi) away inNamibia, where theRuacana Power Station is. This dam is one of the last landmarks along the Kunene River, prior to the Kunene becoming a border feature between Angola and Namibia.[1] A 300 km (190 mi) pipeline and canal extends across the border intoNamibia, supplying towns as far away asOshakati inOvamboland with water. The dam was completed in 1976. However, due to the onset of theAngolan civil war following independence, the full master plan for the scheme was not realised by theSouth African andPortuguese governments.[2]
The area was of considerable strategic importance, providing the pretext for the initial 1975South African military intervention in theAngolan Civil War when staff at the facility were threatened byguerrillas.[3] Full intervention through the SADF'sOperation Savannah followed shortly afterwards.
Throughout the Angolan Civil war Calueque remained continuously occupied by South African forces. In 1988, during theBattle of Cuito Cuanavale, theCubans opened a second front against the South Africans and launched a massive ground offensive in the direction of Calueque. The area to the north of the dam became the scene of bloody fighting which proved to be a turning point in the war. On 27 June 1988,CubanMiG-23 fighters attacked the facilities. The first wave of aircraft bombed the bridge andsluice gates, killing South African soldiers in the process. Another wave bombed the pumps and generator, while a third destroyed the pipeline to Ovamboland. Significantly, one of the last bombs hit the position ofSouth African soldiers nearby who had exited theirBuffel troop carrier to watch the events unfold. The dam and pipelines were considerably damaged, rendering the scheme inoperable. The South Africans (SWATF, A Coy, 701Bn) were the last to leave, retreating over the bridge back into SWA on 29 June, after blowing up the ramparts that were built at the dam wall.[4]
Whilst the Calueque Dam and bridge were neglected since the bombing of 1988,[5] the Angolan Government in April 2012 signed a US$225 million contract for the rehabilitation of the dam wall, the construction of two hydro plants, a new channel and 21 irrigation pivots. The project was awarded toMota-Engil and Lyon and is scheduled to take 25 months.[6]
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