Establishment of the IGA East African Regional Branch - EARB

Establishment of the IGA East African Regional Branch -
EARB
During its 18-19 November 2011 meeting, the IGA Board of Directors approved the formation of the East
African Regional Branch.
Background
To date there are two Regional Branches of the IGA operative, the European Regional Branch (ERB) and
the Western Pacific Regional Branch (WPRB). They have provided a close regional focus for members
with common interests, not only geographically but also in terms of similar types of geothermal resources
and technical applications. The European Regional Branch (ERB) has had a strong focus on direct use
and lower enthalpy resources while the Western Pacific Regional Branch (WPRB) has been more focused
on geothermal power generation.
The IGA Bylaws allow for the formation of other Regional Branches where there is sufficient interest and
a minimum of 50 members or two affiliated organizations willing to apply. The two national geothermal
associations operating in Africa (Ethiopia and Kenya), which both are affiliated to IGA, have agreed to
request the IGA Board to approve the establishment of an East African Regional Branch.
Discussions have been going on for several years on the formation of an African Regional Branch, and it
now seems the right time to advance and formalize the process. East Africa has an estimated geothermal
resource potential of over 15,000 MWe. Development of these resources has the potential to provide firm
baseload generation for the region and improve security of supply. During the last few years different
initiatives for speeding up the development of geothermal resources in East Africa have been established.
The main activity is on-going in Kenya where 209 MWe geothermal power is already installed and
several new geothermal fields are under development.
Support programs have been established to facilitate the geothermal development. One of them is the
African Rift Geothermal Development Facility (ARGeo), funded by GEF (implemented by WB and
UNEP). The co-financing institutions for this ARGeo Project include ICEIDA, BGR, UNU-GTP and
IAEA. The program has two components ready for implementation: a) The Risk Mitigation Fund and b)
Regional Networking and Technical Assistance. The ARGeo program covers the countries Eritrea,
Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
The African Union Commission-Regional Geothermal Programme and Geothermal Risk Mitigation
Facility for Eastern Africa (GRMF) is another support program. GRMF is funded by the German Federal
Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the German Development Bank
(kfW). The aim of the program is to overcome the challenges and mitigate the risks to develop
geothermal resources in Eastern Africa countries by providing grants. The African Union Commission
(AUC) in Addis Ababa is hosting, managing and administering this Facility. The GRMF program covers
the countries Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Uganda.

Reasons for an East African Regional Branch
1. There are common interests in the region in the use of high enthalpy resources for power
generation.
2. As well as the members of the two existing national geothermal associations in the region,
formation of a Regional Branch would also permit individual members of IGA in countries
where there is an interest in geothermal, but which do not yet have a geothermal association,
to join.
3. It is proposed that under the aegis of the Regional Branch, each year a conference organized
by one of the national geothermal organizations be named as the Regional Branch
Conference for that year, on a rotating basis. That will foster closer relationships and give a
boost to international participation in the conferences. However each conference will remain
self-funding.
4. As a group covering a large geographical area the Regional Branch will be in a better position
to attract funding from regional and international agencies than can’t the individual member
associations.
Practicalities and Timing
1. Assume that the IGA Board approves the establishment of the Regional Branch and its Bylaws
at the 53th Board meeting in Melbourne 18-19 November 2011. At that stage the Regional
Branch could be regarded as established by IGA, though it will not yet be a legally registered
entity.
2. The founding members of the East African Regional Branch of IGA will be those members of
the Ethiopian Geothermal Association (EGA) and the Geothermal Association of Kenya (GAK)
who opt to join the Regional Branch, plus other member of IGA living or working within the
geographical area defined who wish to join.
3. The geographical coverage of the East African Regional Branch is proposed to be the following
countries: Burundi, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia,
Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia, , Malawi and Mozambique.
Recommendations
• That the IGA resolve to support the formation of the East African Regional Branch (EARB).
• The IGA Bylaws require that the Chairman of the Regional Branch Forum, which is the 5 to 7 person
governing body of the Regional Branch, be elected by the IGA Board immediately upon formation
of the Branch. It is suggested that the Board elects a provisional Chairman of EARB at the meeting
in Melbourne.
• That notification of the proposed formation of the Regional Branch be put into the next convenient
issue of IGA News, with a request that any IGA members who live or work within the region, but
who are not members of one of the two national geothermal associations in the area, contact IGA if
they wish to become members of the Regional Branch.
• It is recommended that the Regional Branch will be registered as a legal entity and has its own
finances. It is suggested that it will be registered in Kenya.
2 November 2011
Meseret Teklemariam