Achwa 1 Hydroelectric Power Station

The Achwa 1 Hydroelectric Power Station (A1HPS), also Achwa I Hydroelectric Power Station, is a hydroelectric power station in Uganda, with a planned installed capacity of 41 MW.

Location
The facility is located across the Achwa River, in Gulu District, Northern Uganda. This location is at the border between Gulu District and Pader District, approximately 38 km north of the settlement of Aswa. This location is within close proximity of the Achwa 2 Hydroelectric Power Station.

This is approximately 65 km, by road, northeast of Gulu, the largest city in Northern Uganda.

Overview
Achwa 1 is a run-of-the-river hydroelectricity project with planned annual output of 274 GWh. This power station is one in a cascade of five power stations planned on the Achwa River totaling 109 MW. The power generated will be sold to the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited, for integration into the national electricity grid.

Construction
The power generated will be evacuated via the Lira–Gulu–Agago High Voltage Power Line, a 132kV high voltage transmission line, to a substation in Lira, a distance of approximately 140 km, where it will be sold to the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (“UETCL”). Other infrastructure that will be constructed include 9 km of service roads, a 38 km service road to connect the site to the Gulu-Kitgum Road and a camp for the construction workers.

In 2016, solicitation for bids to carry out feasibility and environmental impact assessments for this power station, were advertised. The development rights are owned by Berkeley Energy, through its wholly owned Ugandan subsidiary, Maji Power Limited.

Works were ongoing as of January 2020.