Project Summary

Project General Description

The Nile Equatorial Lakes (NEL) Countries Electric Grids Interconnection Project lays the necessary groundwork for the creation of a regional electricity market that would include not only the NBI development programme but also those of the East African Energy Pool (EAPP). The regionalization of electricity production was confirmed by the options development study as the least costly solution to meet the electric energy demand of these countries. As indicated in the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) strategic action plan, the project consists in the construction and upgrading of 769 km of 110 kV and 220 kV line, as well as the construction and reinforcement of 17 transformer stations. It consists of: (i) the Uganda-Rwanda interconnection: the line runs from Mbarara station to Mirama station in Uganda, then from Mirama station to the new Birembo station in Rwanda; (ii) the Kenya-Uganda interconnection: the line runs from Lessos station in Kenya to Bujagali station passing through Tororo station in Uganda; and (iii) upgrading of the Burundi, DR Congo and Rwanda interconnection. By interconnecting the grids of the five (5) countries (Burundi, Kenya, Uganda, DR Congo and Rwanda), the project will contribute to the implementation of this regional strategy. It will also supplement ongoing energy transmission projects as well as those planned for the future in the region, namely: the development in Ethiopia of Gibe III (1800 MW), the interconnection between Ethiopia and Djibouti, the interconnection between Ethiopia and Sudan, as well as the interconnection between Ethiopia and Kenya. The total estimated cost of the project is UA 160.20 million. It will be implemented within a period of 48 months starting from 2009.

Project Objectives

The sectoral objective of the Nile Equatorial Lakes Countries Power Grid Interconnection Project is to improve the rate of access to modern energy for the population of the Equatorial Nile Basin at a lower cost. The specific objective is to provide the participating countries with adequate infrastructure for interconnection of their electricity grids in order to increase cross-border exchanges of electricity between these countries, which are Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and DR Congo.

Beneficiaries

The main beneficiaries of the project will therefore be the people, local communities, enterprises and trading entities, private and governmental institutions in the five countries, which will have increased access to reliable and affordable electric energy for domestic, industrial and commercial use. This will have an immediate positive impact on the competitiveness of investments in the productive sectors of the economy. The countries themselves and their electricity companies will have energy that will contribute to achieving their national objectives of providing access by the people to electricity. Moreover, national development programmes in the areas of education, health, communication, administration, drinking water supply and sanitation will gain in efficiency resulting from the use of electric energy, especially in rural areas that do not have access to modern energy services.

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