WORLD> Africa
Ethiopian, French firms sign agreement on wind power generation
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-10-10 09:11

ADDIS ABABA -- The official Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo) on Thursday signed an agreement worth 220 million euros ($300 million) with French wind turbine manufacturer Vergnet, providing the former to build Africa's largest wind farm.

Under the agreement, the wind farm, the first of its kind in Ethiopia, has a capacity of generating 120 megawatts within three years, making it the largest such project on the African continent.

The first phase of the wind farm, to yield 30-megawatt capacity, will be commissioned in 16 months.

The wind farm, known as the Ashegoba wind power project in north Ethiopia, is going to be one of the six power generation projects currently under construction with an overall budget of 3.1 billion euros ($4.23 billion).

The wind power project is financed by French Development Agency and BNP Paribas, one of the largest French Banks. It will be constructed by Vergnet, one of the leading French contractors.

Hydropower provides almost all the available electricity in Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa nation has been plagued by constant power failure in recent months.

Ethiopia is well-endowed with wind power potential. Studies suggest it is one of the African countries with the most wind power potential.