Power and Energy in Rwanda
Senior 2 · Geography and Environment
Power and Energy in Rwanda
Lesson 2 of 3
20 min
Every litre of petrol and diesel used in Rwanda arrives by road tanker from a port hundreds of kilometres away. Yet under Lake Kivu and in the southern marshes lie fuels that Rwanda owns. Knowing which resources run out, and what the country's energy really comes from, is the starting point for any energy plan.
About 55 billion m³ of gas is dissolved in the lake's deep water, around 300 m down. At the KivuWatt plant near Karongi, a barge pumps up gas-rich water; as the pressure falls, the gas bubbles out, is cleaned, and is piped ashore to engines that make electricity. The first stage supplies about 26 MW, with plans for about 100 MW. For many years before that, the gas fired the boilers of the Bralirwa brewery in Rubavu. Although it forms naturally, the gas builds up far more slowly than it is taken out, so it is treated as non-renewable.
Peat is partly rotted plant matter that builds up in waterlogged marshes over thousands of years. Rwanda has an estimated 155 million tonnes of dry peat. The Gishoma peat power station in Rusizi (15 MW) came online around 2017, and a larger 80 MW peat plant was developed at Akanyaru in Gisagara District. Draining marshes for peat destroys wetlands, and burning peat releases carbon dioxide.
Petrol, diesel, kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) are all imported, mainly by road from Mombasa in Kenya and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. They are used chiefly for transport, and diesel generators give back-up power. Oil and gas may exist near Lake Kivu, but none is produced.
| Source (2014) | Share of all energy used |
|---|---|
| Biomass (wood, charcoal, crop waste) | 85% |
| Petroleum products | 11% |
| Electricity and other sources | the remaining share |
Grid electricity is only a small part of the total. By December 2022, Rwanda's power stations had an installed capacity of about 276 MW, while the highest demand at any one time (peak demand) was about 140.6 MW.
Tip
Common trap. Methane and peat are natural and found in Rwanda, so students call them renewable. They are non-renewable because they form over thousands of years but are used up in decades. "Local" is not the same as "renewable".
Solution: it builds up far more slowly than it is extracted, so it will run out.
Solution: deep, gas-rich water is pumped up; as pressure falls the gas bubbles out, is cleaned and piped to power engines on shore.
Solution: Mombasa (Kenya) and Dar es Salaam (Tanzania).
Solution: draining marshes destroys wetlands (also: burning peat releases carbon dioxide).
Solution: 0.85 × 200 = 170 units.
Summary
Sources and credits
The energy-mix table, the worked example and the practice items are written by Ganzaa.
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
