NELSAP Project Implementation Unit (PIU) and the Rusumo project engineers continued to increase the speed of work at the Regional Rusumo Falls Hydroelectric Project site, and in April 2020 construction reached yet another milestone, progressing to 62%.
The powerhouse area construction is now ready to accept water passage steel. A temporary tailrace wall and ramp are to be built soon to aid in steel liner installations. At the power intake, the gantry erection continues. Spillway radial gate and operator line assembly continued, including placement of concrete with two spillway decks. River diversion guide wall work is still in progress while headrace tunnel (HRT) works, which include full scale drilling and blasting and pilot blast have been successful. At the switchyard, concreting for gantry tower and shunt reactor bases is progressing well. The elctromechanical contractor (CP2) continues with tower anchor installations while onstruction of permanent residential buildings at the powerhouse are now effectively complete.
The Regional Rusumo Falls Hydroelectric Project (RRFHP) is an 80MW trans boundary hydropower project implemented on the Rusumo river by NELSAP- PIU on behalf of the Rusumo Power Company Limited (RPCL) which was established by the governments of Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania. The project is funded by the World Bank for USD 340 million. The associated transmission lines connecting each of the three country’s Electric Grid to the Rusumo project switchyard are funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) for USD 128 Million.
Upon completion, this project will bring an additional 26.6 megawatts of renewable, clean, relatively low-cost power to the national grids of Burundi, Rwanda and Tanzania. The additional power will benefit an estimated 1,146,000 people in the three countries and an estimated increase in electricity access rates of; 5.4% (520,000) in Burundi, 4% (467,000) in Rwanda and 0.34% (159,000) in Tanzania.
For more on the project kindly visit the Rusumo project website: www.rusumoproject.org