Ethiopia took another step towards in its mission to be a renewable energy powerhouse with the signing of an agreement to build two geothermal power plants. The plants will have a combined cost of $4 billion and will produce a combined 1,000 MW when complete.
The Corbetti and Tulu Moye plants, located in the Rift Valley, should be complete in eight years. The project’s equity investors include the Paris-based asset manager Meridiam, as well as the Africa Renewable Energy Fund and InfraCo Africa – funds that focus on infrastructure.As Ethiopia’s first privately-owned utility, the project will be operated by the developers for a period of 25 years.
Under Ethiopia’s 2015-2020 development plan, the government is targeting an increase in power generation to 17,346 MW from a current capacity of just over 4,300 MW from hydropower, wind and geothermal sources.