Abidjan: The African Development Bank Group’s Board of Directors approved in Abidjan an African Development Fund (ADF) Loan of US $144.9 million to the Kenya–Tanzania Power Interconnection Project. The project will allow the two countries to exchange power.
Besides, the project plays an important role in promoting regional integration through power trade. The project is expected to improve the supply, reliability and affordability of electricity in the Eastern Africa region through cross-border exchanges of cheap and cleaner surplus power from neighbouring countries.
The Kenya–Tanzania Interconnection Project involves the construction of approximately 508 kilometres of transmission line between Kenya and Tanzania (about 93 km in Kenya and 415 km in Tanzania) and associated substations in Arusha and Singida (Tanzania). The line will have a transfer capacity of up to 2,000 MW in either direction. The Ethiopia–Kenya interconnection line will allow for the interconnection of the Eastern Africa Power Pool to the Southern African Power Pool and further in the future to Northern Africa through the East Africa Electricity highway. At its initial stage, the project will allow Ethiopia and Kenya to exchange power, followed by the import and export of energy from the interconnected countries.