Rwanda is set to receive a joint loan worth $266m from the US and the Africa Development Bank for the funding of the construction of 795km of Medium Voltage and 7,317km of Low Voltage lines.
The amounts, $192 Million from the AfDB and $74 million from the US represents 8.2% of the Government of Rwanda’s US $3.3bn budget for the Energy Sector Strategy Plan.
Amadou Hott, the Bank’s Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate Change and Green Growth said the approved program will support the Government to add over 193,000 new on-grid and over 124,000 off-grid connections.
According to the Construction Review, the Bank’s contribution will be for three fiscal years ending in 2021/22 and will be disbursed using the Results-Based Financing (RBF) model, which ensures better risk management and a results-driven approach aligned with the activities of the Bank.
The Bank’s intervention has increased overall access to electricity in Rwanda from 18 per cent to 44% over the last seven years. This support is expected to extend to the Energy Development Corporation Limited and Energy Utility Corporation Limited – subsidiaries of Rwanda Energy Group Limited, the government-owned utility which manages and operates the country’s energy infrastructure.
The Government of Rwanda through its power sector is said to target 512 MW installed power generation capacity, from its current 216 MW power generation and have universal access (100%) by 2023/24 and is also determined to achieve 52% on-grid connections and 48% off-grid connections by 2023/24.
Rwanda like most African Countries relies heavily on hydroelectric power.
