TANZANIA is among three countries in the Great
Lakes Region whose rural populations are set to benefit from the $340
million, World Bank-funded Rusumo hydropower project in Ngara District,
Kagera Region.
The
Rusumo Falls power plant will pump 80 megawatts into the national grid
and thus go a long way towards helping the country meet its electricity
demand along with neighbouring Rwanda and Burundi, which are both also
in proximity of the plant.
According to Bella Bird, WB Group country director for Tanzania, Malawi, Burundi and Somalia, the project “has the potential to become a major trading node of the Eastern Africa Power Pool since it will increase the supply of affordable electricity to the national grids of the three participating countries”.
Bird was speaking at yesterday’s ground-breaking ceremony for the plant in Ngara.
The WB country boss said after its completion, the plant will reduce power generation costs in all three countries.
The expected cost of power generated by the plant will be 6c per Kwh, which is much lower than the average cost of power in Burundi (10c/Kwh), Rwanda (26c/Kwh), and Tanzania (12c/Kwh), she explained.
“We look forward to the successful and timely completion of the construction works in 2019…partners should work hard to keep the project on track and delivering on time”, Bird added.
The project is part of the Great Lakes initiative launched by former UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon together with WB Group president Jim Yong Kim in the past four years.
According to Energy and Minerals Minister Prof Sospeter Muhongo, the Rusumo project entails construction of transmission lines at a cost of $121m to link the national grids of the three beneficial countries.
Each country will have a share of 26.6 megawatts from the 80 megawatts to be generated by the plant, Prof Muhongo said.
“The transmission system will play significant role in boosting electricity trade in the region and Africa as a whole through interconnection routes from North and South Africa power pools,” the minister explained.
He said access to electricity in Tanzania has doubled from less than 30 per cent to 67.3 per cent during the past decade, with access to power in rural areas alone up from just 2 per cent in 2007 to 47.5 per cent currently.
At least 97.3 per cent of the urban population has been connected to electricity, which puts Tanzania among the few African countries to record such an achievement as per global standards, Prof Muhongo added.
While the project is mainly financed by the World Bank, the African Development Bank (AfDB) will provide funds for the transmission systems to the three countries.
AfDB principal energy trading expert Dr Humphrey Ndwiga said a 98-kilometre transmission line will be installed from Rusumo to Nyakanazi in Tanzania, in addition to a 119km line and 161km line to Rwanda and Burundi, respectively.
Rwanda’s Minister for Infrastructure, James Musoni, described the initiative as a key to development of industrialization in the Great Lakes region.
The Rwandese minister called on the contractors undertaking the project to adhere to quality and timely completion of the scheme.
It is understood that of the total $1.3 billion committed by the WB Group towards development projects in the Great Lakes region, $1bn has been delivered so far.
According to Bella Bird, WB Group country director for Tanzania, Malawi, Burundi and Somalia, the project “has the potential to become a major trading node of the Eastern Africa Power Pool since it will increase the supply of affordable electricity to the national grids of the three participating countries”.
Bird was speaking at yesterday’s ground-breaking ceremony for the plant in Ngara.
The WB country boss said after its completion, the plant will reduce power generation costs in all three countries.
The expected cost of power generated by the plant will be 6c per Kwh, which is much lower than the average cost of power in Burundi (10c/Kwh), Rwanda (26c/Kwh), and Tanzania (12c/Kwh), she explained.
“We look forward to the successful and timely completion of the construction works in 2019…partners should work hard to keep the project on track and delivering on time”, Bird added.
The project is part of the Great Lakes initiative launched by former UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon together with WB Group president Jim Yong Kim in the past four years.
According to Energy and Minerals Minister Prof Sospeter Muhongo, the Rusumo project entails construction of transmission lines at a cost of $121m to link the national grids of the three beneficial countries.
Each country will have a share of 26.6 megawatts from the 80 megawatts to be generated by the plant, Prof Muhongo said.
“The transmission system will play significant role in boosting electricity trade in the region and Africa as a whole through interconnection routes from North and South Africa power pools,” the minister explained.
He said access to electricity in Tanzania has doubled from less than 30 per cent to 67.3 per cent during the past decade, with access to power in rural areas alone up from just 2 per cent in 2007 to 47.5 per cent currently.
At least 97.3 per cent of the urban population has been connected to electricity, which puts Tanzania among the few African countries to record such an achievement as per global standards, Prof Muhongo added.
While the project is mainly financed by the World Bank, the African Development Bank (AfDB) will provide funds for the transmission systems to the three countries.
AfDB principal energy trading expert Dr Humphrey Ndwiga said a 98-kilometre transmission line will be installed from Rusumo to Nyakanazi in Tanzania, in addition to a 119km line and 161km line to Rwanda and Burundi, respectively.
Rwanda’s Minister for Infrastructure, James Musoni, described the initiative as a key to development of industrialization in the Great Lakes region.
The Rwandese minister called on the contractors undertaking the project to adhere to quality and timely completion of the scheme.
It is understood that of the total $1.3 billion committed by the WB Group towards development projects in the Great Lakes region, $1bn has been delivered so far.
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