UEGCL HOME PROJECT! Sh6.61Bn Still Sitting Idle at Stanbic Bank as Karuma, Isimba Dams Skills Programme Gets Two-Year Extension
A major Government-backed programme aimed at strengthening Uganda’s capacity to operate and maintain the Karuma and Isimba hydropower plants has ended its original implementation period with Sh6.61 billion still unspent, forcing the project into a two-year no-cost extension.
The Hydropower Operations and Maintenance Excellence (HOME) Project, implemented by Uganda Electricity Generation Company Limited (UEGCL), had a total budget of Sh30.19 billion as of December 31, 2024.
By that date, Sh27.92 billion had been disbursed, representing a 92 per cent disbursement rate, while only Sh24.76 billion had been spent, translating into an 81 per cent absorption rate.
The remaining Sh6.61 billion, equivalent to US$1 million, is being held on the project account at Stanbic Bank Uganda and is expected to be utilised during the extension period running up to December 2026.
The project was originally scheduled to run from January 2020 to December 2024.
Funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the HOME programme is designed to build Uganda’s technical capacity to operate and maintain major hydropower assets, particularly Karuma, with a capacity of 600MW, and Isimba, with 183MW.
The programme is not primarily about constructing new power infrastructure. Its focus is on ensuring that the plants have the technical expertise, maintenance systems and professional asset-management practices needed to operate efficiently and safely.
Under the programme, international and local experts are deployed to support operations and maintenance frameworks, while UEGCL staff receive training in areas including advanced plant maintenance, risk identification and safety.
The broader objective is to build UEGCL into a professional and self-sustaining hydropower operator capable of managing its assets in line with international standards.
The unspent Sh6.61 billion now gives the programme another two years to complete its activities after the original project period ended.
The HOME programme is funded through a NOK84.4 million grant from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
With Karuma and Isimba forming a major part of Uganda’s electricity generation infrastructure, the programme’s performance carries significance beyond its financial figures.
The extension therefore provides UEGCL with additional time to deploy the remaining resources towards the intended technical and institutional improvements.
The key issue now is whether the additional two years will see the Sh6.61 billion balance fully and effectively utilised, while delivering the skills, maintenance systems and asset-management capacity the programme was established to create.
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