FilmDocumentary · Rwanda
KIVU
WATT
An expedition deep into Rwanda
About the film
Deep in the heart of Rwanda, on the shores of the mysterious Lake Kivu, lies one of the world's most extraordinary energy projects. Kivuwatt follows the story of a $200 million facility that extracts methane gas from the lake's depths - transforming a natural hazard into clean electricity for a nation.
Lake Kivu sits above vast reserves of dissolved methane gas - an estimated 60 billion cubic metres - that pose a catastrophic risk of spontaneous release. The KivuWatt project, developed by ContourGlobal in partnership with the Government of Rwanda, draws gas-laden water from 35 bars of pressure, strips the methane, and burns it to generate 26 MW of low-carbon electricity. Inaugurated by President Paul Kagame in May 2016, it is the only gas/water extraction power project of its kind in the world.
Film
The Project
26 MW
Phase 1 Capacity
$200M
Project Value
60bn m³
Methane Reserves
13 km
Offshore Barge
Background
"In 2008 we entered into a partnership with the Government of Rwanda to transform the menace of Lake Kivu's unique gas deposits into the source of something good for the people of Rwanda."
- Joseph C. Brandt, CEO - ContourGlobal
"Many people thought it was actually impossible to be successful with this kind of endeavour but I was happy today that things have proved to be different."
- H.E. Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda
"KivuWatt is an example of what Rwanda stands for - a country that turns challenges into opportunity."
- Rwanda Energy Group
Technology & Process
The gas extraction process brings gas-laden waters from 35 bars down to 2 bars of pressure via a gas separator, where methane bubbles are stripped from the water. The raw gas is then washed in four wash towers to produce clean methane, which travels via a 13 km pipeline to the onshore power plant where Wärtsilä combustion engines generate electricity fed directly into Rwanda's national grid.
Beyond power generation, the extraction process actively reduces the risk of a catastrophic limnic eruption - a sudden, deadly release of CO₂ and methane from the lake's depths - making KivuWatt both an energy and an environmental safety project.
Production
Director
Matt Harris
Location
Karongi District, Rwanda
Lake
Lake Kivu
Client
ContourGlobal
Year
2016
Format
Documentary
Partner
Wärtsilä
Capacity
26 MW Phase 1