This report mentions that EEPCO has about 1.3 million customers (including businesses). That is less than 10% of Ethiopian households. This figure is almost the same as 17 years ago when Woyanne came to power. So what happened to all the money borrowed from the World Bank to build power generating plants?
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Nairobi (HAN) – Last Year Ethiopia had an ambitious multi-billion-dollar plan to provide all its citizens with electricity within eight years (2015), as well as to supply some power to three neighboring countries, Djibouti, Somalia and Sudan a top manager of the state-owned electricity company said.
Because he said, Ethiopia can do because it has a lot of potential to generate hydroelectric power, said Mihret Debebe, general manager of the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation. The country is the source of a branch of the Nile River called the Blue Nile, which is believed to have huge power-generating potential. The Blue Nile merges with the White Nile in Sudan to flow into Egypt as the Nile River.
But, today The Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCO) on Thursday announced that it had faced a critical power shortage. Briefing reporters about electric power generation, Mihret Debebe, general manager of EEPCo, said that as part of the ongoing fast economic development activity noted in the country many factories had been established, adding that this had increased local demand for more electric power rather previous target to supply electricity to Somalia, Djibouti and Sudan.
“Factories which consume high electric power such as cement, textile and foundries have been established. Many new factories are being built and they need more energy,” Mihret said. EEPCO has 1,396,000 customers, 40 percent of them in Addis Ababa. Ninety-five percent of the customers are households and the rest is the industrial and service sector. However, the industrial and service sector, which accounts for only five percent of the number of customers, consumes 69 percent of the electric power.
At the moment EEPCo’s maximum electric generating capacity is 814 MW, 80 percent hydro and 20 percent geothermal and thermal. However, because of various reasons, including water shortage, the corporation generates only 600 to 700 MW. Unable to meet the growing demand EEPCo is now forced to start power shading.
Mihret said that the power deficit, at the moment, is 80 MW. “We are not the only country that is facing power shortage. South Africa is in a serious power crisis. In India and even in the US there is a power shortage. If we were connected with our neighbors we could have imported 80 MW,” Mihret said.
The increasing demand for electric power, coupled with the failed belg rain had worsened the situation. A turbulent time, indeed, awaits EEPCo at least until the rains start in June. Even then it can hardly meet the ever increasing demand. “Because of the favorable investment climate more investments are being made. This creates new demand. And power plants can not be erected overnight. We are victims of our success. This is a temporary problem. And let us all work together to overcome the problem,” Mihret said.
EEPCo is undertaking massive hydro-power projects. Tekeze( 300 MW), Gibe II (420 MW), Beles (460), Gibe III (1870) and Fincha Amenti Neshe (1000). It is also to construct a wind turbine farm which can generate 120 MW near Mekelle town.
The corporation plans to construct more than ten hydropower plants. It is also to build geothermal and wind power plants. The corporation needs 124 billion birr to realize the projects.
At the moment EEPCO is using diesel generators and because of the escalating price of oil in the global market the government is spending 100 million birr to subsidize thermal power production.
Tekeze seems the savior. Construction on the Tekeze hydro-power project is expected to be finalized in August this year. The project was delayed because of geological incidents that complicated the task.
Access to electricity stands at 22 percent and EEPCO plans to increase this figure to 50 percent in the next five years. The country plans to generate 6000 MW and to export the surplus power to Sudan Djibouti and Kenya.
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By Kaleyesus Bekele for HAN.
24 thoughts on “Ethiopia faces Electric power crisis”
Up to now Weyane took over 40 billion dollar credit for the hydro power project.This credit done by the name of ethiopia and 25% of the credit is use for the project but it is un known where about the rest of the credit money.
Ethiopia has been blessed with many big and small rivers that would generate adequate electricity to its people if we know how to use those rivers. To be successful in providing enough electricity to its citizens, Ethiopia must use the money it gets from the west to generate electricity rather than to buy weapons to destroy its own people. The Blue Nile alone can generate sufficient electricity to all Ethiopian citizens if it is wisely used and prudently managed. The problem is who will manage it? Meles may not allow people outside his political party to manage such a huge project, and he must be out of people of his political party to be in charge of the Blue Nile project. He cannot hire the Oromo or the Amhara people because he cannot trust them, or they do not speak his mother tongue. The only alternative left for him then is to bring some Chinese people and run the project. In reality though the Blue Nile is in the Amhara region, and he was supposed to use the Amhara people as managers and blue workers of the new hydro-electricity project. I’m sure he will find some people from Mekelle, skilled or unskilled, and put them there to protect his financial and political interest. He will continue to play this kind of game with the Ethiopian people until he is forced to leave his office, perhaps within two years or before that.
It is okay. The problem will be corrected soon. We have a high trust on the current Ethiopian administartion.
Assta B. Gettu:
Don’t be narrow minded
Time has proven time and time again as long as the crimefamilies are on power and are continuing looting the ressources of Ethiopia, the crissis will worsen into the future.
Nearly 94.25% of manufacturing and service sectors are owned and run by crimefamilies and their associates. what is left over is not near enough for the rest of Ethiopians to sustain life.
Since their plan and business structure is designed in such a way to benifit them in many ways, it is unlikely Ethiopia shall successfully meet the challange and overcome all sorts of problems created by the looters.
Electric shortage, inflation,hunger, and murder are killing Ethiopia and Ethiopians simply because the tplfwoyanae murderers and lotters had these all they planned for Ethiopia while they were hiding in Nakfa cave.
So far, nothing good has worked effectively and efficently for the crimeregime except the looting and the murder. when it comes to cheating the world with false data and numbers, they are there;but, when it comes facts and reality, they are dead cheats and deceptive.
There is abaolutely nothing in common between tplfwoyanae thieves and murderers and the rest of the millions.
We will see more;
Let me start a qutations from the news “Construction on the Tekeze hydro-power project is expected to be finalized in August this year. The project was delayed because of geological incidents that complicated the task.”
As to the Geological complications they have been told the geologic stractures are not tight( it is higely fractured zone as it is Methamorphic rock which has passed an immense stractural stress by nature.) but they have no hear to lesson as it is not there money.
If it was carried out a true fessibility studies they would not have started the constractions with all this difficulites.
This is not the first time when TPLF is digging the people Ethiopia money in to ground.When the first come to power 1990 they start to produce Marbel for dimension stones puropse(under the name Meskrem Investment). The ambtions was so high that to make Tigray as mining center of Ethiopia. They build upp 42 dimension rock quarries in the northern region near by shiraro.There was no problem money they want to Italy and bought quarry equipments for all the Quarries(Genearatos, loaders , differnt type of marble cutters, compressors….)But what they produce was Gravels( small size marbel) not A Dimensions stone( a stone with sizabel dimesnsion). They have been told by proffsionals that they can’t produce a sizabel marbel because you get a marbale deposit.The project lost a grate amount of money which ranges in millons of dollar.
Now having not learing from there mistakes learn from they try to build a power stations in area where Geological stacture of is not stable.It is matter of time before the dam abosrbes its water in its geological fissures. They may say that they have tried to seal major geological fissures but it is imopssibel seal all stracturals fissures in methaphoric rock terrain.
In Ethiopia there is no national electrification policy. The current so called electrification is merely providing light bulbs to households.
It is not productive as it is not coupled to development that uses electricity. We have not seen such as small processing factories flourishing except the use of fridges in Bars or the rise of electrical equipments. Us a result cost recovery is minimum and the cost of electricity remains high which an average Ethiopians can not pay the bill for using only ironing and kitchen oven. As a result it could not prevent cutting of trees and deforestation.
What is the use of electricity then?
Even the export of electricity to Sudan from Tekeze is well calculated, it is about 30 million USD per year, it is not huge money the rest is window dressing. Many Tigrians complain about the high price of cement despite Mesebo factory. This issue of electricity will it be similar problem?
In addition Electrification remained state monopoly. No private owners are allowed in producing and distributing electricity. I think may be EPRDFites may have a chance to get the license. Or the same people working in ELPA would become investors and make the price of electricity unaffordable. Why not subsidize electricity than Oil?
My dear WediEr,
You advised me not to be narrow minded without telling me where my narrow-mindedness stands for. I detect you don’t want people from Mekelle to be used as Meles’ favorite native sons. Am I right or wrong? For this new project, believe me, Meles is not going to hire people from Armacheho, Tegedie, Telelo, Wolkait, Wegera, Belessa, Denbia, or any other sub regions in the Gondar district except from Mekelle. When it comes to fairness, Meles is the most unprincipled person; for example, why did he annex the most fertile land of Gondar to Tigray? He did it because he wants Tigray to be abay Tigray – Tigray the Great! So, the narrow minded person here is not Assta B. Gettu; rather it is Meles Seitanawi who cares only for the people of Tigray instead of for Ethiopia as a whole.
You see,That is why I always say that the politics of Tigrain war lords is cemented on deception and lies.To get the objective understanding of the situation one should always read their deceptive propognda quite the opposite.Forexample when they are saying that the junta is exporting electricity to other countries(they were singing that for decades or so),we should read it they have serious problems with electricity as is the actual case.When they talk about booming econmy,it means the people of Ethiopia are starving to death in actual terms.
It is a matter of priority. Had the finance, effort, and time spent on Tekeze project in Tigrai is spent on another more feasible project in Ethiopia, the impending problem would have been averted.
Assta B. Gettu,
Ignore WediEr. He is a personalizer pro Weyane. He gets a tripple womy when anybody try to take the Weyanes to task. The triple womys are headache, stomach pain and heart attack all at the same time. Otherwise what he said does not make anysense.
Agree with exemployee:
Woyannes are very pinhead,You know what they did,digging the Tekeze gorge(to deepen the gorge),very sad.
There are other rivers flowing on plain land(Baro,Gibe,Dabus,omo—-).It would have been cost effective,if woyannes had spent money on such rivers.
Stupidity,
Tekeze dam is not without problem,
Malaria, dam failure, sedimentation are some of the problems. Nothing is in preparation such as planting trees to generate water to stop erosion , in Amhara region, since 80% of Tekeze water is from Amhara. Instead trees are cut in large quantity
In addition to make grandiose propaganda of the regime, high resolution photo form the foundation to the mid construction of the dam were posted by Aiga forum now they are in the hands of Shabia, they are focusing their missile there in revenge for Hirgigo.
Where the electric car assembly in Debremarkos is, was that to close the mouth of Gojame post 2005 crisis? No road in Ethiopia is a standard to lay trolley cable? You know what you are doing? You are building unnecessary low cost high rise, which prevent or make expensive road expansion for rail or electric. Think for the future generation. Do not spend your energy to disproof the child hood bulling by your colleague Agame or that Tigre is dry land and rocky. Think as government for the whole country. Should the “Son of the Nile be shy of water” (Ye Abay lij woha temaw”
One lesson for EPRDFite, privatization of electricity distribution is so simple. Just like my landlord had an electric meter, electricity is distributed to 6 rooms, we pay here 5 Birr per month. She collects the sum and pay it to ELPA. Similarly for water.
Oh those blinds!
Assta B Gettu you wrote
Meles is not going to hire people from Armacheho, Tegedie, Telelo, Wolkait, Wegera, Belessa, Denbia, or any other sub regions in the Gondar district except from Mekelle.
If he can not trust people from Armacheho, Tegedie, Wolkait, Wegera, Belessa…etc
then why is his wife AZEB MESFIN from those cities you posted.
Please clear your mind from hate and ignorance.
Thanks
Birtukan
I know you will not post my remarks. I will continue to piss you up Kifle. I know where you live!!!!
IP: 24.9.24.163
Anyway, why should the tplfwoyanae looters care about Ethiopia and Ethiopians?
The purpose of their presence in Ehiopia has never been to be real Ethiopians; rather, it is and has been to fake Ethiopian identity and empty out the resources of Ethiopia and waste human capital and money for unfeaseable studies they conducted in a rush. Whose country are these looters destroying anyway?
Because they are wasting millions of dollars on unfeasable projects, such as Tekeze Hydro Electric power, of course, primerly it has been planned to feed enormous energy to their hidden business project of manufacturing sector which never been for Ethiopia to begin with, now they are quite sure that the mega project wouldn’t only make them accountable for their bad decision, they also made Ethiopians drowned in internationally borrowed billions of dollar.
These robbers and criminals have no principle and value for the good of Ethiopia.Their presence in the repressive regime is for their family, relatives, and friends who are participating in driving Ethiopia to bankrepcy. Today, because of their carelessness and unethical conduct and as well as extreme extravagancy, they keep on borrowing millions of dollars in the name of Ethiopia and Ethiopians only to fatten their wealth both inside Ethiopia and abroad. Is it fare?
For example, the Index for social health which actually measures the well-being of Ethiopians is extremely low and destructive. Again, is it fare?
It is extremely sad that while the crimefamilies and their associates making millions of dollar in profit annually, Ethiopia are on the verge of social and economic collapse.
Behind the repressive grip of the crimefamily on Ethiopians there is fast vast expansion of business empire which literally makes each members of the crimefamily billionainers for life.Is it fare?
Sad,sad, and sad! the economy is dominated by the few members of the crimefamily and their associates; when it comes to looting and murdering Ethiopians,the tplfwoyanae criminals have not ethical minds and hearts as they have been intoxicated the blood they are sucking Ethiopians. So far, nothing good and positive has worked for them except looting and murdering.Soon, justiced will prevail and the sun will shine too. Amen.
Thanks shiraromarble for your well informative comments ! Alemetadel hono, most of our leaders are not educated and deserved people, I don’t mean the politician leaders, i am talking about managers and project leaders, assigned mainly for their affiliation for the group rather than their qualification. Our political decision maker leaders need some non-politican leaders and managers to challenge them without being intimidated-in every firm – industrial, project, higher edcation, etc etc.
Dear Birtukan,
I have a clear conscience, and my conscience tells me to hate people who love evil person and hurt others because they are in power.
It doesn’t mean because she is from Wolkait that she necessarily hires people from Wolkait; in fact she tries to avoid them as soon as she descries them. If she were a true lover of her hometown’s people, she wouldn’t have allowed her evil husband to annex Humera-Setit to Tigray. So, she is an enemy of Wolkait, Tegedie, Telelo, Armacheho, Wegera, Denbia, Belessa, etc. as the Prophet Micah says: “… a man’s enemies are the members of his own household” (7:6). She is not the enemy of her hometowns only; she is the enemy of Ethiopia and the wife of the enemy of Ethiopia. Both wife and husband have collaborated (as Ananias and Sapphira in the New Testament consented and lied in front of St. Peter by hiding half of their properties), in murdering thousands of innocent Ethiopians and in hiding worth of millions of Ethiopian properties and bankrupting the entire country. So, who is this Azeb, a queen, a saint, a Cleopatra of Egypt, or a Queen of Sheba? Tell me what has she done to Ethiopia? It is still a mystery to me why they call her the first lady!
Dear Bert,
You are right in advising me to ignore pro-Woyanne people, but they are our brothers and sisters, and we have to show them that our thinking about their Woyanne regime is correct and theirs wrong, so we have the responsibility to bring them into our fold; otherwise they will be our headaches when we take the power into our hands, God willing.
We do agree to what you said. You see, every member of the crimefamily has a role to play and has a name for him or herself.
Azeb Mesfin, in the crimefamily has a role to play and is named as first lady chiefly because she has no measurable and valuable either education or social skills, she is simly that thing, there is a name for it/her.
She travels a lot to shop for a lot, she spends countless hours in front of a flat screen to see what others do in their day to day activities, she hears people saying something about something,and she imagines everything that money buys and moeny does; therefore, the title she has been given either by herself or by others to make her feel good is nothing but a failing public image construction.
Most or all of the crimefamily spend their daily life not thinking for the public or doing nothing a real constructive public activities; rather, they simply pass their time on themselves and their accumelated wealth.
Azeb Mesfin like any other member of the crimefamily focuses on her personal ill-gooten wealth and she works hard in her own little way to contribute to the collective wealth build up of the crimefamily.
For her identifying herself as first lady is just like her applying her makeup on her face to mask her true identity. Ethiopians don’t know her doing any measurable and qualitative and value oriented activities in the society since invasion.
In general, it is absolutely wasting of time to talk about a fake first lady whose presence in Ethiopia taking her share of loot from the mouth of homeless children.
Dear Kalubicha Zerbkud,
Thank you for identifying Azeb Mesfin’s role and explaining to me, and if that is the only role she plays in the Ethiopian societies, she is not better than the biblical Lot’s wife – pillar of salt.
What goes around, comes around.
EELPA generators were looted from Gondar to be used in Tigrai. WolKait-Humera was looted for consolidating “Abay Tigrai.” Inspites of their looting of Ethiopian, Somali, and Eritrean innocents, it’s not surprising to see their pay back failure from materializing success in their retarded brain of Dedebit Science of Technology.
Lij yiroTal inji ayKedmim!
We currently have the solution for Ethiopia’s power, water, waste, and transportation needs. I am networking with people around the planet to get this project going and I hope that we can overcome the obstacles of corruption.
We have concentrated solar: 20×20 inches produces 5kw! This is beyond anything out there.
Also we have micro-wind (clusters of small wind power generators.)
Micro-hydro electric that uses water mass, not water velocity. So you can leave the precious Blue Nile as it is.
There is enough solar and wind power in Ethiopia to power the whole country with a surplus to sell.
If you are interested in helping in any way, please contact me.
Bill
[email protected]
Tutu,
I will not expect different positive thing in our power development. The first problem of Ethiopian Government is lack of know how. All the group around the party and their followers haven’t a drop of knowledge of every thing, but they act as they know every thing. They are talking a lot before doing nothing. one thing i assure you that most projects Implemented in and will be implemented (during Derg regime and now) are studied or the idea is generated in Hile silasia regime. It is known that there is no capable person with in EPRDF. They always works with foreign consultants. They never want Ethiopians to involve freely with out accepting their Zero party manifesto.
In general, the Ethiopian power crises is a lack of visionary professionals in Ethiopia electric power development. Any development in Ethiopia is lead by the deaf politicians.You will see after some years the crises will propagate to Ethiopian Air Lines.
Thanks,