Rwanda has acquired a proposal from an investor outlining a plan to extract and stockpile massive portions of peat throughout the dry season, enabling the Gisagara peat energy plant to function persistently all year long, Minister of Infrastructure Damien Murwanashyaka has mentioned.
The ability, often called the Hakan Energy Plant, is positioned in Mamba Sector of Gisagara District, adjoining to the peat extraction website. Building started in 2017, and the plant began supplying electrical energy to the nationwide grid in 2021.
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At present, peat is extracted solely throughout the dry season and isn’t stockpiled, leaving the plant with out adequate gasoline to function at full capability throughout the wet season.
Murwanashyaka mentioned stockpiling massive portions of peat throughout the dry season might allow the Gisagara plant to function at its full era capability of 70MW.
“This plant was designed to provide 70 megawatts. Nevertheless, as a result of peat can solely be mined throughout the dry season and no ample stockpiles are ready for the wet season, mining stops when the rains come. The plant is producing solely between 30MW and 35MW,” he mentioned.
The plant requires 2,191 tonnes of peat per day, however extracts solely 600 tonnes on account of restricted provide, compounded by challenges posed by local weather change, notably throughout the wet season, officers mentioned.
“What I wish to reassure everyone seems to be that we have now an investor who has proposed an answer. The proposal is at the moment underneath evaluation by the federal government. The investor would extract sufficient peat throughout the dry season in order that, as an alternative of slowing down throughout the wet season, the facility plant can proceed working with out interruption,” the minister mentioned.
The plant requires a constant provide of 1.2 million cubic metres of peat—sufficient to be stockpiled and maintain steady era.
The plant's administration has repeatedly pointed to repeated flooding within the extraction space, attributable to rising water ranges in Akanyaru River, as a significant disruption to manufacturing.
Over the previous 4 years, local weather change has considerably affected the river’s water ranges. Initially, the river degree was recorded at 3.5 metres, however it has now risen to 4.9 metres, he mentioned, mentioning that this modification was unexpected.
Floodwaters wash away among the peat whereas leaving different deposits waterlogged, making extraction throughout the wet season troublesome.
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The electrical energy generated by the Gisagara peat-fired energy plant is fed into Rwanda's nationwide electrical energy grid.
On the finish of 2025, the administration of Hakan Energy Plant mentioned roughly $25 million was wanted to deal with the challenges stopping the ability from reaching its full manufacturing capability.
Plant managers say there may be availability of adequate peat assets in Rwanda, citing research indicating the ample provide from the Rwabusoro Marshland in Gisagara District, Southern Province, able to sustaining the plant's operations for 30 years.
The plant extracts peat from round 300 hectares, however its administration mentioned the realm must be expanded to about 800 hectares to satisfy its goal.
Research have proven that Rwanda has roughly 155 million tonnes of peat reserves unfold throughout 50,000 hectares.
Rwanda at the moment has an electrical energy era capability of 471MW, up from 406MW in 2024, and goals to extend it to 615MW by 2029.
