Energy in Uganda

Burning of renewable resources provides approximately 90 percent of the energy in Uganda, though the government is attempting to become energy self-sufficient. While much of the hydroelectric potential of the country is untapped, the government decision to expedite the creation of domestic petroleum capacity coupled with the discovery of large petroleum reserves holds the promise of a significant change in Uganda's status as an energy-importing country.

In the 1980s, charcoal and fuel wood met more than 95 percent of Uganda's energy needs. In 2005 and 2006, low water levels of Lake Victoria, the main source of the country's electricity generation potential, led to a generation shortage and an energy crisis. As a result, the country experienced frequent and prolonged blackouts. As of June 2016, according to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, about twenty percent of Ugandans had access to electricity. As of February 2015 and according to the Uganda Electricity Regulatory Authority, Uganda's installed electricity capacity was 810 megawatts, with peak demand of 509.4 megawatts so that "the incidence of load shedding due to shortage in supply is now close to zero." By July 2016, according to Uganda Electricity Generation Company Limited, the generation capacity had increased to 862 megawatts. Uganda expects to have a generating capacity of at least 1,681 megawatts by the end of 2020.

Poor maintenance during the politically unstable 1980s resulted in a drop in production at the Owen Falls Dam (now Nalubaale Power Station), at the mouth of the White Nile, from 635.5 million kilowatt-hours in 1986 to 609.9 million kilowatt-hours in 1987, with six of ten generators broken by the end of 1988. The 200 megawatt Kiira Hydroelectric Power Station, built adjacent to the Nalubaale Power Station, raised total production capacity to 380 megawatts.

Between 2007 and 2012, the 250 megawatt Bujagali Hydroelectric Power Station was constructed as a public-private project, at a cost of approximately US$862 million. The consortium that owns the station includes the Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development, Sithe Global Power LLC (a subsidiary of the Blackstone Group), and the government of Uganda. Bujagali Energy Limited is a special-vehicle company created to run the power station on behalf of the shareholders.

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Wikipedia