- A new project has been initiated to electrify unconnected consumers in Uganda.
- The project will integrate both grid and off-grid approaches to electrification.
- It is expected that the result from the project will inform future electrification plans in the country.
A new integrated energy pilot project has been initiated to electrify homes and businesses in Uganda. The project called ‘The Utilities 2.0 Twaake’ is being coordinated by Power for All and funded by The Rockefeller Foundation. The project will see the country’s central power utility Umeme Ltd; several Uganda-based renewable energy companies deploy clean, affordable, reliable energy services.
According to the World Bank, only 28 per cent of Uganda’s population have access to the grid; achieving universal energy access would require the connection of 10 million Ugandans. While grid connection of the unconnected would cost about $7billion, the Utilities 2.0 Twaake pilot is has been designed to reduce the cost by 50 per cent using integrated energy.
Integrated energy combines grid network and decentralized technology (including solar home systems, mini-grids, grid, and smart grid systems) to provide cost-effective customer-centric energy services.
This integrated energy pilot is being deployed across two sites; Nyenje for grid connection and Kiwumu off-grid DRE site. The grid-connected Nyenje site has been operational since July 2020, and 26 per cent of businesses receiving electricity. In Kiwumu, the pilot has deployed a 40kWp mini-grid to power 300 households and 60 local businesses. Results from the pilot project will inform future policies and plans and inform the government’s development agenda.