Minister begs West Nile to wait again for dam
Ms Ruth Nankabirwa, the Minister for Energy and Mineral Development (2nd right), is briefed during the tour of Nyagak III power plant construction in Zombo District on Tuesday. PHOTO / ELEMENT ALUMA
What you need to know:
- The sub-region that relies on power from the 3.5 MW Nyagak I power dam supplied by West Nile Rural Electrification Company (Wenreco) and Electromax from their generator, has been receiving intermittent power interruptions due to fuel shortage for the past three weeks.
The Minister of Energy and Mineral Development, Ms Ruth Nankabirwa, has appealed to West Nile locals to remain calm as works on the Nyagak III power dam project are still far from completion.
The sub-region that relies on power from the 3.5 MW Nyagak I power dam supplied by West Nile Rural Electrification Company (Wenreco) and Electromax from their generator, has been receiving intermittent power interruptions due to fuel shortage for the past three weeks.
Government commenced construction of the 6.6 Megawatt Nyagak III dam to supplement the 3.5 Megawatt.
While touring the construction site of Nyagak III on Tuesday, Ms Nankabirwa, said: “My advice to the people of West Nile is to appreciate the challenges that everybody is faced with globally, including in our country. Wenreco relies on electromax generation of power because Nyagak I cannot give us all the power we need,” she said.
She said the thermal power generated by electromax is bound to be affected by global fuel prices, adding that the increasing tariffs will not help the people of West Nile.
“You may chase out Wenreco today but another supplier will come in and still face the same challenge, Nyagak III will be the lasting solution to the suffering of people of West Nile,” Ms Nankabirwa said.
As a result of intermittent power supply, a group of concerned citizens have embarked on a social media campaign to advocate for the exit of Wenreco.
Currently, the dam construction stands at 70 percent, according to Mr Isaac Arinaitwe, the chief project officer of Uganda Electricity Generation Company (UEGCL).
“We are hoping that if the government can prioritise this project this year, we are confident West Nile will be lit next year because this project is very key to the development of the region,” he said.
The director of Hydromax and Dott Services, Mr Reddy Mahesh, said the project faces funding challenges and they need Shs22 billion to complete it.
“Already, we have spent Shs30 billion on this project and we need Shs22 billion to complete the remaining works. We have got those loans from commercial banks at high interest rates but other funders want to see government commitment first before they can come in,” Mr Mahesh said.
The 6.6MW Nyagak III power plant was meant to have been completed in September this year but the contractor has asked for more time up to March 2023, citing funding challenges.
