Consumption of electricity in Uganda during the peak hours, that is, from 6P.M. to midnight, has risen from 554 megawatts (MW) in February 2016 to 1,337MW as of February 2026, according to the Electricity Regulatory Authority.Generation capacity increased, too, from 861.3MW to slightly over 1,980.49MW.
It would be misleading, though, to assume that Uganda's electricity generation capacity is increasing at a faster average pace than its constrained demand.As many readers know, it takes upwards of five years to construct a large hydropower generation station - Uganda's preferred renewable source.In that period, constrained demand would have risen fivefold or thereabouts because, for certain, new consumers would have connected to the national electricity grid.So, Uganda should increase its electricity generation capacity in the medium term or budget to import the shortfall in the long run.Five years since Power China carried out a study into the feasibility of cranking out 840MW from Ayago in northern Uganda, the government of Uganda has not updated the citizens on the project.
Relatedly, whereas the government inked a Memorandum of Understanding with China International Water and Electric Corporation, the outfit that constructed Isimba hydropower plant, to conduct feasibility studies on the 392MW Oriang HPP, it has not apprised the population.
As Ugandans wait for news about breaking ground for the two projects, government officials from the region are peppering their speeches with the need to invest in more artificial intelligence (AI), et cetera.
AI computer systems - like data centres, and servers whose fans run 24/7 to ensure their hard disk drives do not overheat and risk sparking fires - consume a lot of electricity.
Governments need to move fast.
