Ethiopia has identified three possible sites for its first nuclear power plant. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced the news during a visit to the Ethiopian Nuclear Energy Commission, the body that coordinates the national program.
The plant will have two reactors of 1,200 megawatts each, for a total capacity of 2,400 MW. The next phase involves three steps: verifying the suitability of the proposed sites, preparing the chosen one, and signing an agreement with the company that will supply the technology. Construction costs, the financing scheme and the in-service date have not yet been officially disclosed.
The partner is Russia’s Rosatom. In September 2025, Addis Ababa and Moscow signed an action plan in Moscow between Rosatom and Ethiopian Electric Power, in the presence of Abiy and Vladimir Putin. The document sets out the roadmap for feasibility studies, infrastructure, regulatory preparation and workforce training. According to industry analysts, the project envisages VVER-1200 reactors and commissioning between 2032 and 2034.
The latest formal step is a confidentiality agreement between the commission and Rosatom, signed in Moscow by the head of the agency, Sandokan Debebe, and by Andrey Rozhdestvin, CEO of Rosatom Energy Projects. Ethiopia’s foreign ministry describes it as a tool for implementing the understandings already reached on the peaceful use of nuclear technology.
The commission was established by the Council of Ministers in October 2025, with the mandate to guide the use of nuclear power in electricity access, industry, food security, healthcare and research. Abiy noted that reliable energy is essential for industrialization, manufacturing and digital infrastructure. He added that nuclear technology can also contribute to healthcare, agriculture and environmental protection.
The choice responds to a concrete problem. Ethiopia’s power system relies largely on hydropower, while demand is growing with a large population and ongoing industrialization. A 2,400 MW plant would provide stable output, independent of hydrological seasons. Abiy stressed safety and responsible use, and pointed to the training of qualified personnel and research as two conditions for making the program work.
With candidate sites and a supplier already identified, the decisive step will be the technology contract. If the schedule holds, Ethiopia could join the African countries operating a large-scale reactor in the first half of the next decade.
