Ruzizi III Energy Limited (REL) is a special purpose vehicle that has been established and registered in Rwanda to develop the Ruzizi III Regional Hydroelectric project (Project). It is a key development project and will be one of the largest infrastructure projects in the region comprising Rwanda, Burundi, and eastern DR Congo. It is the first privately financed project in sub-Saharan Africa that will utilise a common regional water resource to generate power that will be shared equally between three countries.

The Project will be constructed and owned as a public-private partnership (PPP) among the Republic of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and the Republic of Rwanda (together as the Contracting States) and REL. It is an Independent Power Project (IPP) based on a Build, Own, Operate, Transfer (“BOOT”) structure and underpinned by a 25-year concession agreement and Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs).

It is currently projected that the Project will benefit a population of around 30 million people, 54% of whom are living under the poverty line and averaging a 24% electricity access rate. Once commissioned, Ruzizi III will almost double Burundi's current capacity, increase Rwanda's installed capacity by nearly 30% and provide much-needed baseload power in Eastern DRC, a region that is otherwise isolated from DRC's interconnected grid. 

The Project will generate clean and renewable power, reducing the region’s reliance on expensive thermal generation that currently costs in excess of US 35 cents per kWh. It will also reduce the local communities’ dependence on wood fuel and charcoal; a major threat to the countries’ forests and biodiversity. Availability of the renewable power will support efforts to extend electrification to the region.