The Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) is a

parastatal A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the government ...

company whose primary purpose is to make bulk electricity purchases and transmit the electricity along high voltage wires to local and foreign distribution points. UETCL is the sole authorized national bulk energy purchaser and the sole authorized electricity importer and exporter in Uganda.

Location

The headquarters of UETCL are at 10 Hannington Road on Nakasero Hill in

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...

, Uganda's capital and largest city. The coordinates of the company headquarters are 0°19'13.0"N 32°35'12.5"E (Latitude:0.320278; Longitude:32.586806).

History

The company was established in 2001 by an act of the Ugandan parliament following the break-up of the defunct Uganda Electricity Board. UETCL began operations on 1 April 2001.

Operations

UETCL is responsible for the development, operations, maintenance, and improvement of the high-voltage power transmission lines, above 33kV, in Uganda. It also owns and operates the high-voltage substations (above 33kV), around the country. UETCL is wholly owned by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and is regulated by the Ugandan Ministry of Energy & Mineral Development.

Power loss reduction

To reduce electricity transmission losses in the country, UETCL has borrowed US$100 million (UGX:337 billion) from

Exim Bank of China The Export–Import Bank of China (Chexim - China Exim Bank) () is one of two institutional banks in China chartered to implement the state policies in industry, foreign trade, economy, and foreign aid to other developing countries, and provi ...

to construct four mega substations. The installations will feed the industrial parks at

Luzira Luzira is a suburb of Kampala, the capital of Uganda. It is best known for the country's main prison, Luzira Maximum Security Prison, which has seen significant redevelopment thanks to the work of African Prisons Project, a charity based in the UK ...

Namanve Namanve is an area in the Central Region of Uganda. The larger portion of Namanve lies in Kira Municipality, in Wakiso District with portions located in Mukono Municipality, in Mukono District. Location Namanve lies in Bweyogerere Ward, in s ...

Mukono Mukono Town is a municipality in Mukono District in the Central Region of Uganda. The town is administered by the Mukono Town Council. The district headquarters are located in this town. Location Mukono Municipality is 21 km east of ...

, and

Iganga Iganga is a town in the Eastern Region of Uganda. It is the main municipal, administrative, and commercial center of Iganga District. Location Iganga is located in Uganda's Busoga sub-region. It lies approximately , by road, northeast of the c ...

. The work also involves construction of of 132 kilovolt transmission lines. The work was expected to be complete in 2019.

Controversy

In March 2022, the company chairman at that time, Peter Ucanda resigned, citing bad Ugandan media coverage of him personally and of the company. About one month later, the parent Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development fired the entire seven-person board, save for one member, the company secretary. Reasons cited for the dismissals include alleged "fraud and abuse of office at the company". A new board of directors has been appointed but had not been sworn in yet as of 29 April 2022.

New board members

In June 2022,

Ruth Nankabirwa Ruth Nankabirwa Ssentamu is a Ugandan politician, who serves as the Minister of Energy and Mineral Development in the Ugandan Cabinet, effective 8 June 2021. Although she told her supporters "If the cows vote, let them vote, I want to get 120% ...

, the incumbent Minister of Energy and Minerals, introduced and swore in a new board of directors for the company. The new board members are: 1. Kwame Ejalu: Chairman 2. Sharon Achiro 3. Innocent Oboko Yotkum 4. Sylvia Muheebwa Nabatanzi 5. Cecilia Nakiranda 6. Julius Mukooli and 7. Michael Taremwa Kananura: Acting Managing Director/CEO.

References

External links

UETCL Homepage

Uganda: Electricity Firms Face Staffing Challenges
As of 7 September 2015.
Land Owners hampering power grid extension - UETCL
As of 10 March 2022. {{coord, 00, 19, 13, N, 32, 35, 12.5, E, display=title Energy companies of Uganda Electric power infrastructure in Uganda Energy companies established in 2001 Government-owned companies of Uganda Electric power companies of Uganda 2001 establishments in Uganda