ADDIS ABABA (AlertNet) - Ethiopia is gearing up to export large amounts of clean power across East Africa in the coming years, starting with neighbouring countries Djibouti and Sudan. But the ambitious plans have ignited controversy on several fronts.
Ethiopia wants to increase its electricity exports - mainly generated from hydropower - as a reliable source of precious hard currency. It is estimated to possess a potential capacity of 45,000 megawatts (MW) from hydro alone, which could place it at the centre of an emerging electricity network across the region, driven largely by renewable energy.
The Eastern Africa Power Pool aims to connect the power grids of at least nine countries, including Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan and Djibouti. It may also be extended to northern and southern Africa.
State-owned Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo) last year announced a revised 25-year power-sector strategy, aiming to boost generating capacity to 37,000 MW by 2037. A substantial amount is intended to be surplus power and is slated for export.
Work is already underway to achieve this goal. The 283-km Ethiopia-Djibouti transmission line was officially inaugurated in October 2011. The 230-kV line, enabling Djibouti to import up to 60 MW of electricity, is estimated to be earning Ethiopia at least $1.5 million per month, and has eased Djibouti’s reliance on fossil-fuel power plants and generators.
The African Development Bank (AfDB) provided $95 million for the project linking the two countries. Its launch was significant for Ethiopia, as tiny Djibouti has a port that serves as the gateway for around 98 percent of landlocked Ethiopia’s export-import trade, creating economic and security interdependence.
Electricity is costly in Djibouti compared with the rest of East Africa and even Arab League member states, making its capital, Djibouti City, one of the most expensive cities in the Arab world.
Producing power with fuel-operated generators costs about $0.25 per kilowatt hour compared with around $0.07 per kilowatt hour for the power Ethiopia is exporting to Djibouti, according to EEPCo.
But the project caused some controversy when it was launched. At the time, major cities in Ethiopia, including Addis Ababa, faced sporadic power cuts, sparking grumbles by some Ethiopians that the scheme came at the expense of their own domestic power supply.
Multilateral donors were also initially hesitant about the feasibility of power export schemes due to concerns over inadequate infrastructure and political instability in the region.
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