Ethiopia has significant renewable energy resources and has made considerable progress in expanding electricity generation, primarily with hydropower which consists 97 percent. At the same time, the government has set ambitious targets for increasing electricity access and developing additional renewable energy sources such as wind and solar to support economic growth and electrification.
Despite this progress, the energy sector faces several challenges. Ethiopia’s high dependency on hydropower makes the power system vulnerable to climate variability, while electricity access and reliability remain key issues. At the same time, electricity demand is growing rapidly as electrification expands and economic activity increases.
The Danish-Ethiopian Energy Partnership (DEEP) addresses these challenges by strengthening Ethiopian capacity within three focus areas:
- Long-term energy planning
- Development of wind energy
- Integration of renewable energy in the power system
This approach builds on Denmark’s long-standing experience and expertise in the green transition, enabling peer-to-peer dialogue, expert exchanges, and knowledge transfer between Danish and Ethiopian energy authorities.
Through DEEP, Danish and Ethiopian partners collaborate on developing energy planning scenarios, improving the regulatory framework for renewable energy investments, strengthening power system operations, and supporting the integration of variable renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. The partnership emphasizes building institutional capacity to ensure sustainable, long-term impact, supporting Ethiopia’s ambition to expand electricity access while developing a reliable and cost-effective renewable energy system.
Cooperation between Danish and Ethiopian authorities
Denmark and Ethiopia have cooperated on the green energy transition since 2016 through a series of programmes, namely Advancing Wind Power Generation in Ethiopia (2017-2022) and the Strategic Sector Cooperation on Energy (2020-2023). In 2023, a new five-year programme was initiated – Danish-Ethiopian Energy Partnership (DEEP).
The Danish partners are the Danish embassy in Addis Ababa and the Danish Energy Agency. The Ethiopian partners are the Ministry of Water and Energy of Ethiopia, Ethiopia Electric Power and Ethiopia Electric Utility.
The programme is financed until June 2028.