Empower New Energy signs PPA for 1.9-MW HPP in Rwanda

Norway-based Empower New Energy AS this week announced it signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) for a 1.9-MW run-of-river hydropower plant (HPP) in Rwanda with the state-owned Rwanda Energy Group in December.

The impact fund manager, which invests in small and medium-scale renewable energy projects, will hold equity capital in the project together with its developers Rwanda-based Travaux d’Ingenierie Generale du Rwanda (TIGER) and Norway-based engineering and construction company Malthe Winje.

The Rucanzogera HPP is to be located in the eastern part of Rwanda. The project, costing a total of USD 7.9 million (EUR 7.1m), will produce 9 GWh of power a year once operational. It will also save over 7,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) annually.

The HPP will provide about 10,000 people with better power access and is expected to result in aggregated savings of around USD 67,500 per year for homes in the area.

The project has won a EUR 0.5 million (USD 0.55m) grant from Nordic Development Fund's Energy and Environment Partnership for Africa fund. The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation has also provided a grant for concept development, transfer of knowledge and training of local staff and cost sharing for construction of needed local infrastructure.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.900)

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