ADDIS ABABA– Water, Irrigation and Energy Minister has planned to generate 50MW electricity from geothermal energy source as an initial production by the next Ethiopian year, The Ethiopian Herald learnt.
Senior Energy Analyst at the Ministry, Mesfin Dabi told The Ethiopian Herald that currently it has started to test drill Aluto Langano project. Corbetti and Tullu Moye project test drilling will be started at the end of this Ethiopian budget year as well.
“Aluto Langano was planted as a pilot project of the Ethiopian Geothermal Energy Resource to generate 7.5 MW though it stopped functioning after generating for short time. Aluto Langano is being upgraded from 7.5MW to 70MW of its initial installation,” Mesfin said.
The government will cover the cost of the drilling process if the expected result will not be achieved at the initial phase to ensure private sector participation, he said.
Following the power purchase agreement signed between the government and Corbetti Geothermal Project, Corbetti and Tullu Moye projects will start test drilling to generate 500MW electricity each but will produce 50MW as production test at the end of GTP II, he added.
The Ethiopian government is also negotiating with private firms, Ormat Geothermal and Cluff Geothermal, to build additional projects, he reiterated.
Solomon Kebede, Director of Geothermal Exploration with Geological Survey of Ethiopia, also told The Ethiopian Herald that Ethiopia has a potential to generate 10,000MW electricity from geothermal energy source at the Great Rift Valley section of Ethiopia starting from Bishoftu (Oromia State) to Dallol (Afar State).
Full realization of the energy source needs over seven years as it involves complex tasks.
The Ethiopian Herald June 7/2019
BY YESUF ENDRIS
