Small hydropower plants in Zambia, Uganda and Rwanda
Czech Development Agency - ČRA supports business plan for construction of small hydropower plants in Zambia, Uganda and Rwanda
In Zambia, Rwanda and Uganda, energy is identified as one of the priority sectors of the economy, with the need to build additional resources and stabilize supplies. In many cases, the development and use of the potential of local resources and production is limited, prevented or slowed down precisely by the lack of electricity. Therefore, the Czech company HYDROPOL Project & Management a.s., with the support of the B2B subsidy program of the Czech Development Agency, decided to analyze in detail the conditions and potential for the construction and commissioning of small hydropower plants in these countries, which will contribute to increasing the availability of electricity in the long term.
Already in 2020, the team of HYDROPOL Project & Management, a.s. preliminary assessment of most countries in the Sub-Saharan Africa region that have the potential to apply long-term corporate experience and capacities in the renewable energy sector. As part of the internal assessment, pilot countries were identified – Uganda, Rwanda and Zambia – in which there are suitable conditions for the construction of hydroelectric power plants, have a long-standing tradition in this field and at the same time still offer new business opportunities and investments in a stable business and political environment.
All of these countries belong to the group of so-called LDCs (“Least Developed Countries”), i.e. countries with the highest poverty rate, with large social differences between the population, with a still insufficiently developed infrastructure, at the same time with a high population growth rate but low average life expectancy. The overall electrification rate is still insufficient, with large differences between urban and rural areas; in rural areas, the share of grid connections reaches between 3% and 10%, while the demand for energy is growing at a rapid pace. At the same time, there is a high share of energy production from hydropower sources, there is experience with their construction and operation, and overall support for the construction of renewable energy sources is declared.
Natural conditions in these countries are generally suitable for the construction of small hydropower plants. For example, in Zambia - one of the priority countries for foreign development cooperation of the Czech Republic - the electrification of the country is about 23% (urban agglomerations 47%, rural areas about 3%) and 50% of this energy is consumed by the mining industry. Most of the electricity comes from hydropower sources (86%). However, the installed capacity is mostly already fully utilized and is still insufficient to cover the gradually increasing demand. Currently, there is also great interest in moving away from planning and building power plants with high dams and large reservoirs to more compact, stable and efficient hydropower plants, without the negative socio-environmental impacts on their surroundings that the construction of large dams always brings. In recent years, production from these large sources has also been affected by lower rainfall, causing major operational problems and grid outages, especially during increasingly prolonged dry spells. Replacement production using diesel generators is expensive and environmentally problematic, which is why new renewable energy generation facilities are still being developed.
"Small hydropower plants are inherently considered a clean, renewable energy source with limited impact on the environment. A hydropower plant does not produce harmful emissions that contribute to increasing the amount of CO2 and other greenhouse gases, which are one of the reasons for further warming of the atmosphere. An available source of clean electricity also means limiting the consumption of other, non-renewable resources by the local population - e.g. felling trees and vegetation, collecting wood, burning kerosene for cooking and heating purposes, as well as the use of unecological and expensive fuels for electricity production, such as the operation of diesel generators. A positive impact is also the contribution to slowing down the process of desertification, degradation of soil resources, erosion, sedimentation in watercourses, etc.," explains Jan Pilař, Director of Project Development in Africa and Southeast Asia from HYDROPOL Project & Management, a.s., describing the advantages of the upcoming projects.
The company's main long-term goal is to create conditions for the successful implementation and investment in small hydropower projects (SHPs), which will contribute to ensuring the production and supply of electricity for the population of selected regions in Uganda, Rwanda and Zambia. The development of an analysis of the conditions and a follow-up business plan during 2021 represented a comprehensive activity, including, among other things, mapping and evaluating the current situation in the energy sector, evaluating the plans and intentions of both government institutions and authorities, state energy companies, as well as the activities of private companies and non-profit organizations within the framework of grant development programs with the support of foreign donors, evaluating their actual progress and implementation, getting acquainted with successful projects, or with the reasons for their suspension or termination. Only in this way can other potential sources of funds outside the budget of the ZRS CR program be identified in the follow-up phase, both private sources and, for example, international programs designed to support and develop renewable sources in Africa.
"Throughout this year, we have been working in Uganda, Rwanda and Zambia to gain as much insight as possible into the conditions for development, construction and investment in projects that have been the company's specialty for more than 25 years. An integral part of our operations in the region are also activities leading to establishing contacts with other potential local partners and project owners. Preliminary identification of suitable specific locations is already underway and a so-called project pipeline is being created. For selected locations in Uganda, the basic parameters and conditions were verified as part of field surveys both in the area of the Elgon volcano massif on the border with Kenya and in the west of the country in the Ruwenzori Mountains and near the borders with Rwanda and Congo. Despite various restrictions caused by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we spent several weeks in the field and this experience is invaluable for our further work. We are convinced that the project contributes to strengthening the existing, although not yet very extensive, business cooperation between Zambia, Uganda, Rwanda and the Czech Republic. Its meaning and benefit was presented at all meetings and presentations that we attended in all countries during 2021. We are pleased that these meetings made it possible to contribute to strengthening awareness of professional, technical and managerial capacities originating in the Czech Republic, while donor and development activities supported by the Government of the Czech Republic through the Czech Development Agency were also presented,” adds Jan Pilař.
Projects are gradually being prioritized for the next stage, which will include, among other things, ensuring a complete permitting process, processing technical documentation and negotiating the conditions for connection to the electrification network and purchasing the generated electricity. In close cooperation with local strategic partners, local providers of professional services for further project preparation (surveys, studies, legal support, etc.) and preliminary potential suppliers of materials and construction supplies and activities have also been identified.
The project will continue to raise awareness of the aspects and benefits of using renewable sources of electricity generation in the short and long term. The HYDROPOL Project & Management team also expects that as part of its continued operations in the region, coordination between interested state organizations in the future development of small hydropower plants will be further built and strengthened.
