Rwandans and the global environment will benefit from an Emission Reduction Purchase Agreement (ERPA) signed Friday between Electrogaz and the World Bank (WB).

According to a subsequent communiqué, the much hailed pact is Rwanda’s first ever carbon finance project under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol which aims at reducing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere and hence reduce global warming.

The WB is acting as a trustee of the Community Development Carbon Fund (CDCF), an international partnership designed to provide poor countries an opportunity to benefit from new investments in renewable energy and clean technologies that aim to reduce greenhouse emissions while improving the wealth of communities.

Energy State Minister Dr. Albert Butare presided over the signing that took place at his ministry noted that this was a very important achievement for Rwanda on many fronts.

Butare said, Rwanda was signing the agreement as the second country in sub-Saharan Africa.

He observed that Rwanda was the fifth to sign the pact in Africa – after South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt.

He said this was good for the country as it would help generate revenue, save energy and help in combating climate change.

After putting pen to paper, Electrogaz Managing Director Yves Muyange shed more light on the project.

"Reductions being made in terms of watts and carbon emissions are being sold to the World Bank. We are paid fifteen dollars per ton of carbon reduced,” Muyange said, noting that Electrogaz’s carbon emission reduction programme uses energy saving lamps which they have been distributing since last year.

"We are reducing the consumption of energy in our customers’ households…we are also reducing the energy being produced by Electorgaz – we are saving, so that we can distribute more.”

He said that the water and energy utility is currently preparing a tender to import some 400,000 energy saving lamps by next year, adding that 50,000 of them were distributed last year, 150,000 this year while 200,000 more are expected in September.

WB acting Country Director Erik Fernstrom said that the agreement which has an environment protection component was part of a larger effort to drastically increase the energy rollout from the current 6 percent to 16 percent in 2012.

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