Ethiopia Steps Up on the Renewable Energy Challenge in Africa.

Africa's biggest wind farm has begun production in Ethiopia, aiding efforts to diversify electricity generation from hydro-power plants and help the country become a major regional exporter of energy. Africa's second most populous country - plagued by frequent blackouts - plans to boost generating capacity from 2,000 MW to 10,000 MW within the next three to five years.

Much of the increase would come from the 6,000 MW Grand Renaissance Dam under construction on the Nile. The US $290m Ashegoda Wind Farm was built by French firm Vergnet SA with concessional loans from BNP Paribas and the French Development Agency (AFD). The Ethiopian government covered 9 percent of the cost.

"Various studies have proved that there is potential to harness abundant wind energy resources in every region of Ethiopia. We cannot maintain growth without utilising the energy sector," Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said in a speech at the launch. Experts put Ethiopia's hydropower potential at around 45,000 MW and geothermal at 5,000 MW, while its wind power potential is believed to be Africa's third-largest behind Egypt and Morocco. Read more: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2013/10/africa-biggest-wind-farm-opens-ethiopia-2013102713165843147.html