Ethiopia expands hydropower ambitions

Another addition to Ethiopia's 16 major hydropower plants which generate 95% of the country's total electricity, further securing Ethiopia's energy security and enabling it to produce enough clean energy to export to neighbouring countries. We have a huge potential for hydropower. We utilise a very small percentage of our potential, so we have to work hard to utilise our resources properly. Due to its hydroelectric utilization, Ethiopia has one of the lowest carbon footprints in Africa, with per capita CO2 emissions roughly 97 percent below the global average. Even the construction of this dam is mainly fueled by clean energy. The electricity that we need for the running of all the different plants we have, even the camps which accommodate the people, is provided through a transmission line which was part of the project we actually we built. And it's connected to the hydroelectric project 150 kilometres upstream from us. But other Ethiopian dams built on the Nile have caused diplomatic tensions with Egypt and Sudan, who say they threaten its water access downstream. An accusation denied by Ethiopia, who argues all Nile Basin countries are entitled to use the river. So there is no design aspect to hold back the water, but to conserve the water and then use it for hydropower. Ethiopia is set to host COP32 in 2027, hoping to promote the country as a leader on the continent for clean energy production.