2merkato

Ethiopia is to conduct a feasibility study for the construction of a 250 million US dollar wind farm in Assela using a 1 million dollar loan from the African Development Fund.

The Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation is in the process of identifying a suitable site and laying the groundwork to hire contractors although financing for the 250 million project is yet to be established.

The contractors will undertake environmental and social impact assessment and investment cost estimations as well as economic and financial analysis said Miskir Negash, Head of Communication with the EEPCo.

Ethiopia is borrowing 1.78 billion birr to produce 50MW of power from refuse accumulated at the Repi Waste Disposal in Addis Ababa according to the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation. This ground breaking effort is part of plans to diversify the national power supply it was said.

The EEPCo signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Cambridge Industries, a UK company, to facilitate the project including garbage collection, treatment and conversion to electric power.

The financing for the project was obtained through a low interest loan said Miskir Negash, Head of Public Relation of the corporation.

Ethiopia has received an 80 million dollar soft loan for a project to construct and expand electric power transmission lines from EDCF, South Korean state bank announced the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation.

The loan agreement will be signed between the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and Economic Development and a representative of the Korean government here in Addis Ababa soon.

The project is an expansion of the Beles-Bahir Dar- Sululta transmission line stretching from Debremarkos-Gebreguracha-Sululuta over 212 KM and carrying 400 KV explained Misikir Negash Head of Corporate Communications with the EEPCo.

The National Mining Corporation announced that it has 128 tons of gold ready to be mined in Ethiopia. The Gold is to be found at the Okote project operated by National Mining.

It is expected that the reserve will translate into a significant mine with little exploitative work and an appropriate definitive feasibility study claimed the corporation in the statement it released.

The overall reserves of the Okote concession to be found in Oromia Regional state are estimated to total 454 tons of Gold elaborated the statement. The site could potentially produce about 10 tons annually effectively doubling the gold output of Ethiopia explained a statement from National last March.