Djibouti:

Djibouti Seeks to Tap Geothermal Energy to Reduce Power Costs (Bloomberg)

(Courtesy Bloomberg)

Abdourahman Omar Haga moves his hand over a fissure in a lava lake on the edge of Djibouti’s Ghoubbet el Kharab sea, trying to detect hot vapors invisible to the naked eye in the searing midday sun.

“Can you feel it?” the 59-year-old geologist asks before offering a word of caution: placing one’s hand near the deep crack in the black rock feels like being too close to a steaming kettle. “It’s very hot!” says Haga, who has spent the past three decades looking for ways to tap Djibouti’s geothermal potential.

The site, known as Asal-Fiale, is one of more than a dozen areas the government says may produce at least 1,000 megawatts of electricity. Generating power from steam forms part of the state’s plan to become completely reliant on renewable energy by the end of the decade and cut electricity costs that the African Development Bank says are among the highest in the world.

Read More.......