UETCL announces nationwide power blackout

"UETCL informs the general public that a national blackout has been registered this morning following a load rejection test at the Karuma Hydro Power Plant," the power transmitter said in a statement posted on their X handle, adding that system restoration is underway.
The 600MW Karuma power plant is located on the Nile River in Kiryandongo District in mid-northern Uganda, 110km downstream of Lake Kyoga, and 270km from Uganda's capital, Kampala.

In February this year, the last unit of the six turbines at the power plant was launched, according to an earlier story by the publication.

The first unit of the power plant completed its trial run and grid connection tests on March 21, 2023.

Financed by the Export-Import Bank of China, the dam is critical in meeting the region’s increasing electricity demand in efforts to accelerate industrialisation.

It has been touted as the project that will reverse the high cost of power that is impacting the government’s industrialisation drive as well as increase the country’s capacity to export power, even though it comes with more debt repayment pressure, energy economists say.

The dam is poised to generate power for export to South Sudan, about 180km away, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, about 200km away.

Last year, Uganda and South Sudan signed a Power Sales Agreement for trade in electricity between the two countries. The deal was signed in the South Sudanese capital Juba. The power will be supplied mainly to the towns of Oraba, Elegu, Kaya, and Nimule in South Sudan before extending it to Juba.

Uganda borrowed 85 percent ($1.44 billion) of the $1.7 billion project cost from China’s Eximbank for the construction of the dam.