Methane Gas in Rwanda is found in Lake Kivu in the Eastern African Rift Zone and the DRC. The 2,400 sq.km lake contains high concentrations of naturally occurring methane gas (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), with the highest concentrations at depths ranging from 270m to 500m. The oxygenated upper layer of the lake from the surface to a depth of 60m supports the lake’s biology. The resource is shared equally between Rwanda and the DRC.

Lake Kivu contains about 300 billion cubic carbon dioxide and 60 billion cubic meters of CH4. An estimated 120 to 250 million cubic meters of CH4 is generated annually in the Lake.

Rwanda wishes to utilize this resource to develop methane-to-power projects and other uses such as fertilizer and industrial use.

The Methane in Lake Kivu is estimated to be sufficient to generate 700 MW of electricity over a period of 55 years. Rwanda’s share of the total generation potential is about 350 MW, with the rest being DRC’s share.

It has the capacity to generate 120 million to 150 million m3 of CH4 per annum, representing a power potential of 90 to 130 MW.

Historical Use of Lake Kivu Methane in Rwanda

Lake Kivu methane was first taped by Union chimique de Belge with a gas pilot plant at cape Rubona in 1963 to supply the Bralirwa brewery. Bralirwa brewery converted one of its boilers to use gas in place of fuel oil and was supplied with 5,000 cubic meters/day of methane gas purified to 80%. The pilot plant was recently shut down after operating for over 40 years.

Existing Methane-to-Power Projects in Rwanda

  1. KivuWatt project, a subsidiary of Contour Global (US-based Company) plans to generate 100MW in two phases, the first phase, which was commissioned in December 2015 is currently producing around 26.4 MW that will be followed by the second phase of 75 MW
  2. Kibuye Power (KP1) pilot project located in Rubavu district has been generating around 3MW of electrical power with the design capacity of 3.6 MW; Symbian Power acquired this power plant through the liquidation process and is now mobilizing funds to revive the plant and scale it up to 50 MW.
  3. Symbion Power Lake Kivu Ltd, a subsidiary of Symbion Power LLC, Plans to generate 50 Megawatt (MW) methane gas for a power project, the Power plant will be located in the Nyamyumba sector in Rubavu District.

Lake Kivu Monitoring Programme

To ensure the safe extraction of Lake Kivu methane gas and the protection of the surrounding population through the preservation of the lake’s stability, the government established the Lake Kivu Monitoring Program (LKMP) as a special unit under the Rwanda Energy Group to monitor compliance and sustainable development of Lake Kivu gas resources.

Available Documents

Numerous reports on Lake Kivu going to 1937 are available. Recent studies by LAHMEYEROSAE and K.Tietze and Lake Management Prescriptions are also available