Uganda Commissions $1.7 Billion Hydropower Plant Financed By China

Uganda commissioned its largest electricity generation facility, the 600-megawatt Karuma Hydropower Project.

The $1.7 billion project, primarily financed through a loan from China, significantly increases the country’s power generation capacity to over 2,000 MW, according to Reuters.

A Chinese state-owned engineering company, Sinohydro Corporation, constructed the project. The plant, built on the River Nile, experienced multiple delays after construction began in 2013.

At the commissioning ceremony, Chinese Ambassador Zhang Lizhong described the hydropower project as a symbol of China-Uganda cooperation, adding that the plant would “connect millions of households with affordable electricity” and “contribute to sustainable clean energy for East African development.”

China’s Exim Bank funded 85% of the project through a $1.4 billion loan, while Uganda covered the remaining costs.

Alongside the plant, a 248-kilometer transmission line was also launched Thursday to distribute the power.

Currently, Uganda exports power to neighbouring Rwanda, Tanzania, and Kenya and plans to build another transmission line worth $180 million to export electricity to South Sudan, which is experiencing energy challenges.

Energy Minister Ruth Nankabirwa acknowledged that the Karuma Hydropower Project faced several logistical challenges, including delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is the second major hydropower project in Uganda funded by China. The first one is the 188 MW Isimba Dam, completed in 2019; the project cost $500 million.

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