Ethiopian Prime Minister visited State Grid Corporation of China

Ethiopian Prime Minister visited State Grid Corporation of China

On April 24, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali visited Beijing and met with Kou Wei, Chairman of State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid). Both parties held in-depth exchanges and discussions on jointly promoting the "Belt and Road" Initiative and strengthening China-Ethiopia energy and power cooperation, and witnessed the signing of the Ethiopia PPP power transmission and distribution project implementation agreement between China Electric Power Equipment and Technology Co., Ltd. and the Ministry of Finance of Ethiopia.

Abiy pointed out that Ethiopia attaches great importance to the infrastructure construction in energy and power field, especially in power transmission and distribution. With the continuous economic and social development, the demand for power supply and its reliability in Ethiopia and neighboring countries is on the rise. Therefore, Ethiopia has increased investment in energy and electricity, and will fully support the PPP transmission and distribution project while striving to achieve win-win outcomes under the "Belt and Road" Initiative. It is hoped that State Grid will give full play to its advantages in technology, capital and management, increase investment in Ethiopia and carry out broader practical cooperation on the basis of existing ones, so as to promote the success of PPP Transmission and Distribution Project and serve the power industry and socio-ecnomic development of Ethiopia.

Kou Wei said that State Grid's UHV transmission, smart grid and large grid operation control technology are playing a leading role in the world. State Grid actively serves the "Belt and Road" Initiative, highly values the cooperation with Ethiopia in energy and electricity, applies advanced technology and experience to the transmission and distribution projects of Ethiopia, and has built the most advanced projects of this type in Africa. During the implementation of the project, State Grid attached great importance to project quality, respected local culture and customs, provided training for technicians and construction personnel of Ethiopia and ensured a 85% local employment for the project. The signed PPP transmission and distribution project will secure power supply of 16 industrial parks in Ethiopia, and greatly improve power supply reliability. State Grid will adhere to the principle of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration, and promote the implementation of the project for mutual benefits and win-win cooperation, so as to contribute to socio-ecnomic development of Ethiopia.

Since the introduction of the "Belt and Road" Initiative, State Grid has built the GDHA 500kV power transmission project, the light rail matching transmission and transformation project, the Ethiopia-Kenya ±500kV DC transmission line project and the mid-low voltage distribution grid upgrading project in Ethiopia, with a contract value of about $1.8 billion. These projects have been affirmed by people from all walks of life in Ethiopia, promoting the establishment of positive mutual trust and cooperation between both parties, playing a positive role in enhancing the reliability of power in Ethiopia and promoting the economic and social development of the country.