From AllAfrica:

As part of the plans to become a regional energy exporter, Ethiopia on Tuesday said it is working on a new power strategy to boost electricity production.

Prominent Ethiopian and foreign experts on Tuesday began consulting on ways to implement Addis Ababa’s 25-year power master plan. Head of the state utility, Ethiopian Electric and Power Corporation (EEPCo), Mihret Debeb, told reporters that the new power policy will enable Ethiopia to generate 37,000 mega watts (MW) of electrical energy by 2037.

Ethiopia’s current power production stands at around 2,300 MW. However, experts say the stated amount of power is not enough to produce the increased demand in the countries industrial sector and taking into account the country’s fast economic growth.

Under the country’s 2010 launched five-year growth and transformation plan, Ethiopia has plans to increase its power generation to 10,000 MW and to sustain its economic growth at 11-15 percent per year until 2015.

Experts told Sudan Tribune that under the new plan Ethiopia will eventually be able to export over 4,000 megawatts of hydro-power to some nine countries in the East African region. This could eventually be extended to North and South African nations.

Written by Tesfa-Alem Tekle | Read more at AllAfrica