Africa's hydropower new project outlook

According to esi-africa.com, the International Hydropower Association's 2011/2012 activities report says that African countries are increasingly developing energy policies targeted at extending their power grids and promoting renewable energy projects.

In May 2011, Kenya announced its least cost power development plan (LCPDP) which includes small hydropower projects with a combined capacity of 1,000 MW. Uganda's national development plan (2010-2014) includes a number of hydropower projects, which are under construction or in the planning stage, with a combined capacity of 1740 MW.

Other significant African national hydropower developments and/or feasibility studies took place during 2011 in Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique. Regionally - the governments of Burundi, Rwanda, and Tanzania announced their plans to build a 90 MW hydropower project on the border between Rwanda and Tanzania. The project will supply power to all three countries.

In recent years Ethiopia has accelerated the development of its hydropower potential. In March 2011, Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi announced construction of the Grand Renaissance Dam, scheduled to be completed by 2017. The project,
esi-africa.com says, is planned to have 6,000 MW of installed capacity.

Read the full article on www.esi-africa.com.

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