UEDCL IN SH.185BN LOAN SCANDAL! Questions Mount Over Projects, Spending and Rising Power Losses Now at 18.5%
UEDCL ED Rwakakooko
Parliament’s Committee on Natural Resources has demanded a detailed account of how Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) is spending a US$50 million loan secured in January 2026 for capital projects, amid concerns over the company’s ability to improve electricity supply.
The committee, chaired by Kazo County MP Dan Kimosho, wants UEDCL to provide a breakdown of the specific projects being financed by the facility, the amount allocated to each project and the extent to which the funds have so far been absorbed.
UEDCL officials told the committee that the loan is financing capital investments covering substations, transformer injections, medium-voltage projects and other distribution works.
The officials said implementation of the projects had already started, but did not provide the committee with a detailed breakdown of the expenditure during the interaction.
Kimosho directed UEDCL to furnish the committee with an absorption plan and details of the targeted projects, seeking to establish where the money is going and whether it is translating into improvements in the electricity distribution network.
The scrutiny comes at a time when MPs are questioning UEDCL’s investment capacity since taking over electricity distribution from Umeme.
The committee was told that UEDCL had invested only about US$1.5 million since the takeover, including new connections, compared with approximately US$132 million invested by Umeme during the final five years of its concession.
In April 2023, the Permanent Secretary, Irene Bateebe, revealed that Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) required US$158 million to enable it to invest in the distribution system over the next three years.
MPs are seeking to establish whether the new US$50 million facility can close the investment gap and address the infrastructure challenges facing UEDCL.
The committee is particularly concerned about rising energy losses. UEDCL officials reported losses of about 18.5 percent, compared with approximately 15 percent under Umeme and a national target of about 13 percent.
Acting UEDCL Managing Director Joselynne Rwakakooko told MPs that every percentage point of energy losses represents approximately US$7 million annually.
Based on the gap between the reported losses and the target, the committee estimated that the losses could amount to about US$35 million annually, equivalent to roughly Shs130 billion.
The committee also wants the investment plan to demonstrate how the loan will support new customer connections, reduce energy losses and strengthen the reliability of the distribution network.
The demand for accountability comes as the government seeks to strengthen UEDCL after the end of Umeme’s concession.
Energy Minister Sidronius Okasai Opolot acknowledged that the transition presented significant challenges but said government was committed to ensuring UEDCL delivers the electricity services expected by Ugandans.
MPS have raised concern the UECDL is experiencing more energy losses yet the rate had relatively dropped before Umeme’s concession came to an end
In 2005, the government of Uganda and UMEME Ltd entered into a series of agreements that gave UMEME the right to manage the assets of the government-owned Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL) and carry out the distribution business.
UMEME was managing up to 95% of the country’s distribution business, while UEDCL managed the bulk of the remaining customers, primarily based in the rural countryside.
Some had found Umeme’s tenure relatively successful; others said it was not. Umeme has reduced energy from over 32% to 16%, and its revenue collection rate stood at 99% by the time of exit. It reportedly had over two million customers.
A couple of agreements were executed to operationalize the concession; these include the Umeme concession agreement and the Power Sales Agreement, among others.
The committee is expected to scrutinise UEDCL’s project list, expenditure, and implementation timelines when the company submits the requested documentation next week.
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