Rwanda: Researchers Highlight Mini Hydropower

http://allafrica.com/stories/200710250624.html

Rwandan researchers have urged government decision-makers to provide more support for mini hydropower plant projects, which could solve the country's energy crisis and deliver power to isolated rural areas.

The call comes as ELECTROGAZ, a government-owned company providing hydropower, warned that the country's current level of hydroelectric and thermal energy production is "not enough" to meet consumer demand.

At a press conference last month (2 September) Jhon Mirenge, director general of ELECTROGAZ, backed mini hydroelectric power plants to boost energy production in Rwanda.

Hydropower was promoted in Rwanda in the early 1990s to take advantage of the country's numerous rivers and lakes. But since 2000 environmental degradation has reduced the efficiency of hydroelectric plants.

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