To support the development of Rwanda’s Ruzizi IV hydropower project, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a grant worth $8.92 million, raised from the European Union’s Africa Investment Platform.
The grant approval comes after the New Partnership for Africa Development’s Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility approved a $980,000 grant in 2018 to help co-finance the project.
“The African Development Bank played a major role in structuring and raising financing for Ruzizi III, and the lessons learned will be used to successfully develop and implement Ruzizi IV. The use of renewable and affordable electric power will help to reduce poverty, unemployment, greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation, as well as stabilize security in the Great Lakes region,” said Batchi Baldeh, AfDB’s Director for Power Systems Development.
The plant is built on the Ruzizi river between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and will provide Rwanda, Burundi and the DRC with electricity. Upon completion, Ruzizi IV will generate 287MW of power and use the maximum hydropower capacity of the Ruzizi River.
Rwanda already has two power plants in operation; Ruzizi I, producing 29.8 MW and Ruzizi II, currently producing 43.8 MW. There is a third plant, Ruzizi III, which is under development with support from the AfDB, its output is projected to be at 147 MW.
