Hydropower Dam-Based Rural Electrification in Ethiopia: The Case of Amerti-Nashe Hydropower Plant, Horo Guduru Wollega Zone

Abstract

Expanding electricity access and energy in rural areas is a central policy issue in Ethiopia. The hydropower plant is one of the solutions to the shortage of electric energy in remote rural areas. This research deals with Amerti-Nashe dam-induced rural electrification in western Ethiopia. The main objectives of this study were to investigate the rural electrification impact of small dams on local communities in Ethiopia in the case of the Ameri Nashi dams. The study collected primary data from a sample of 316 households that live in the vicinity of the dam. Statistical analyses such as the Chi-square test, paired t-test, and binary logistics model were performed to determine differences in energy distribution, use of energy before and after the dam project, energy adoption status, challenges for households to adopt electric energy, and energy impacts. The result of the research shows that more than half of the population was not provided energy from the nearby Ameri-Nashe and Fincha dams, and instead, the majority of the population of the zone depends on traditional fuel as a source of energy. There was a disparity in the distribution of electric energy among the sample households due to different factors like distance from the grid line, the unaffordable cost of adoption, and grid-based electric energy.