The Electromax Fuel Tank at Euata in Arua district where Thermal power is generated to add on to the HEP from Nyagak All Photos by Joseph Jurua
By Joseph Jurua
Arua
Various individuals who ushered into the year 2024 with excitement and love in West Nile have re-ignited the demand for urgent connection of the region to the national power grid.
This comes in the wake of continuous promises made to the population by the government on its commitment and efforts to connect the region to the national grid Hydro Electric Power, with the nearest power source constructed at Karuma dam.
Karuma Hydroelectric Power Station has an installed capacity of 600 megawatts of power, with a 71-meter (233ft) Hydraulic head providing up to 4,373 Gigawatt per hour annual generation.
Expected to be opened in 2024, the Karuma power plant was constructed for 1.7 billion USD (266.8 billion shillings) according to Uganda Electricity Generation Company Limited (UEGCL).
The current power supply in West Nile is from Nyagak 1 Mini Hydro Power which generates 3.5mws power while a thermal power plant in Euata in Arua district generates an additional 8.2 megawatts, but the supply is irregular and cannot meet the demand for industrial development.
No national grid connection since 1914
Before 1914, West Nile was part of the then Boga Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo under the administration of the Belgian colonialists. When the British through the Ngurudoto agreement carved West Nile to become part of Uganda, the Belgium administration then surrendered it to the British administration in 1914 when West Nile fully became under Uganda.
Since then, West Nile has not been connected to National power grid, but relies on power from Nyagak 1 and thermal generators at Euata managed by West Nile Rural Electrification Company WENRECo, which power is industrially unreliable.
Ray of hope
Jackson Lee Buti Atima, the Member of Parliament for Central Division in Arua City who is also the government chief whip for West Nile re-echoes the urgent need to expedite the power connection process to the region.
Atima says he is optimistic that by April 2024, the power woes of West Nile will be resolved once the installation of power lines and the power substations are complete.
He said according to information obtained in the last meeting with the Ministry of Energy, the works at the two power stations are at 98%, and technical works have been commissioned.
The government through the Ministry of Energy assured that power connection would be done by the end of April 2024, with already installed pylons crossing to Arua via Ajia to Muni power substation in Arua City.
“We are not sleeping and we shall continue to fast-track the connection to ensure West Nile gets its share of the national cake,” Atima said.
The legislator said work is progressing and this will create jobs, promote industrialization in West Nile, and boost the economic development of the area that has available markets in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
Electricity to trigger employment
Rose Munduni, the Secretary Chamber of Commerce, Arua City, said to foster industrial development and limit unemployment in West Nile and Arua City, there is a need for stable power.
“The entire population needs stable power for industrialization and become an industrial hub which will solve the issue of unemployment,” Munduni said.
Raggs, the secretary of the Indian Community in Arua City said the business owners faced numerous challenges in 2023 and prayed these challenges be overcome for better socio-economic development.
Former Ayivu County MP Bernard Atiku recounts the 100 million USD the 10th Parliament approved as a loan facility from the World Bank for connecting power to the West Nile region but wonders why the government has not lived up to its commitment.
Nyagak 1 currently generates 3.5mw power, but the demand for power stands between 5.6mws to 6mws. Another project the government is undertaking is the construction of the Nyagak 3 power plant.
More power dams in offing
Once completed, Nyagak 3 power plant will generate 6.6mws power which Energy Minister Ruth Nankabirwa believes will solve the problem of unstable power in West Nile alongside the national grid connection for industrial development.
“We shall evacuate power from Nyagak 1 and 3 to connect Nebbi and Arua substations with already 98 percent works completed and technical testing done and equally connect National grid lines and solve the problem of West Nile,” Nankabirwa said.
The construction of Nyagak 3 power station which will cost over 19 million USD (shs72b) is undertaken by DOTT Services Limited.
