Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan's tripartite talks, related to the construction of the $4.8-billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile, collapsed in November after water ministers from the three countries failed to agree on how to proceed with findings and recommendations by French firms BRL and Artelia on the impact of the project on Nile River waters.
The French firms were picked in 2015 to study the hydrological, environmental and economic impact of the 6,450-MW dam, the largest in Africa. Italian contractor Salini Impregilo is constructing the dam, which lies more than 700 kilometers northwest of the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.