Africa's first-ever waste-to-energy plant launched in Ethiopia

Aug 22, 2018: Ethiopia has recently inaugurated the waste-to-energy facility in Addis Ababa, which is the first in Africa. The plant, which has been named as the Reppie project, will incinerate at least 1,400 tonnes of waste per day. The waste will be converted to energy as the nation targets a green economy in the future.

The site has received $120 mn in financing from the Ethiopian government, and has been designed and constructed by a consortium consisting of Cambridge Industries Limited, China National Electric Engineering and Ramboll.

“The growth of energy sector has been a key driver of economic growth in Ethiopia over the last several years, this happened because electricity supply is much needed in order for the economy to transition from predominantly agricultural to industrial and to attract local and foreign investors. Ethiopia has been investing extensively in hydropower, geothermal, wind energy, solar energy and now biomass to boost the manufacturing sector with a supply of clean, renewable energy,” stated Ethiopia’s President Maluta Teshome. 

“The Reppie project is just one component of Ethiopia’s broader strategy to address pollution and embrace renewable energy across all sectors of the economy,” stated Zerubabel Getachew, Ethiopia’s deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.