Several wind projects under development in Ethiopia

According to the External Communications Director at Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP), Miskir Negash, Ethiopia is embarking on a green economy strategy, in which wind power is a key component.

According to different sources, there are several wind projects under development in Ethiopia:

• A 120 MW wind farm in Ayisha near the Djibouti Border. The country is currently in negotiations to close commercially the project with China's Dongfang Electric Corporation.

• 153 MW Adama II wind power project, which is being developed by Hydro China and CGOC. The total project investment is estimated at US$345 million and has reached 82% completion. 85% of the total cost is provided by the Chinese Exim Bank, while the Ethiopian government has provided the remaining 15%.

• 51 MW Adama I wind power project, 95 kms south east of ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa. The project, which was developed in 2012 by Hydro China and CGOC, is to be commisioned. The total project investment is estimated at US$117 million. 85% of the project’s funding was provided by the China Export Import Bank while the rest 15 percent was provided by local sources.

• 120 MW Ashegoda wind farm, located in Northern part of the country. The facilities, which were developed by Vergnet SA, were inaugurated in October 2013. The total project investment is estimated at US$289.7 million. The project finance was provided by BNP Paribas and the French Development Agency (AFD). The Ethiopian government covered 9%of the cost.

Ethiopia is embarking on a second phase of its five year Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) starting from late 2015. The plan aims to increase power generation capacity to 10,000 MW from the current 2,200 MW. The majority will come from hydropower energy, followed by wind power, geothermal, with small contribution from waste energy and co-generation.