The European Investment Bank (EIB) has entered into an agreement with the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, and Rwanda for the EUR9.1 million (US$9.89 million) grant for the Ruzizi III hydropower project. 

The project will be developed by Industrial Promotion Services (IPS) and SN Power. The grant will be used as funding of the pre-financial close development activities of the project.  The grant will be provided by the European Union through the EU-Africa Infrastructure  Trust Fund and managed by the European Investment Bank.

Once commissioned, Ruzizi III will double Burundi’s current electricity generation capacity, increase Rwanda’s installed capacity by 33% and provide much-needed baseload power in Eastern DRC, a region that is otherwise isolated from DRC’s interconnected grid.

The European Union, the EIB, and other European financial partners have supported the Ruzizi III project since 2009 and followed international technical, environmental and social best practices.

International financial institutions including the European Investment Bank, the European Union, Kreditanstalt Für Wiederaufbau (KFW), the French Development Agency (AFD), the African Development Bank (AfDB), as well as the World Bank are supporting the project.

Ruzizi III is also supported by regional organizations including the Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries (ECGLC), the  Nile Basin Initiative and the Nile Equatorial Lakes Subsidiary Action Program (NELSAP).

The financial close of the Ruzizi III hydropower project is expected to be agreed by mid-2021.