Situational and Context Assessment:
Ethiopia
Kitchen Lab Test : Ethiopia
Working Paper 20 August 2020. V.1.0. DRAFT
Authors: Hilawe Lakew Tesema, Getnet Tesfaye, Mekdes Paulos, Meron Tesfamichael, Yacob Mulugetta
This material has been funded by UK Aid from the UK government; however the views expressed do not
necessarily reflect the UK government’s official policies
Contents
1 Overview ............................................................................................................................. 3
2 E-cooking in Ethiopia............................................................................................................ 3
3 Contribution of Electric Stove to the Peak Load Demand ....................................................... 4
4 Kitchen Lab Test................................................................................................................... 4
5 Findings of cooking tests ...................................................................................................... 6
6 Conclusions and recommendations ...................................................................................... 7
Annex 1: Recipe for Three Main Ethiopian Dishes ......................................................................... 8
Annex 2: Summary of Kitchen Lab Test Result ............................................................................. 10
2
1 Overview
In Ethiopia, cooking with electricity in urban areas has been continuously increasing for the last ten years. The
main driver for increased adoption of electric stoves is the relatively cheaper price of electricity compared to
other cooking fuels. Until two years before, price of electricity remained unchanged since the last tariff
revision made in 2006. In real terms, electricity was continuously getting cheaper. However, since December
2018 a four-year tariff revision plan has been introduced by the utility.
Even though increased adoption of electric cooking benefitted urban households in terms of cheaper cooking
costs and access to clean cooking solutions, high power rating added to poor performance of the most widely
used electric stoves, have made electric cooking contribute to the peak load demand in a significant scale.
The MECS project believes that promoting efficient and low power rating electric stoves would benefit both
users and the electricity utility. The cost of cooking with efficient and low power rating e-cooking powered
with off-grid solar PV systems (with mini-grids or stand-alone solar PV systems) would be competitive with
cooking with charcoal in terms of Life Cycle Cost analysis. The objective of the Kitchen Lab Test is to compare
the cost of cooking with different fuels and compare how low power and efficient e-cooking stands out in
terms of cost saving, performance requirement and convenience.
2 E-cooking in Ethiopia
Household Ownership of Electric Stoves
Estimates based on electric stove ownership growth trend from CSA and import data from ERCA indicates that
in 2017 about 1.8 million households in Ethiopia own at least one electric stove (Table 1).
Table 1. Estimation of Electric Stove Ownership from CSA WMS for year 2008 to 2017
Following the increasing trend of electricity adoption in the last decade and the expansion of grid electricity,
current ownership of electric stoves in Ethiopia could be over 2 million households (estimate).
3
3 Contribution of Electric Stove to the Peak Load Demand
The country context study and a rapid survey conducted in Addis Ababa in June 2020 highlight the following:
• About 1.8 million households owned electric stoves for cooking in 2017, which has risen rapidly since
2012. Similar trends are also experienced in other urban centres across Ethiopia.
• Survey result shows that 50%, 35%, and 40% of households cook at the same time each day,
contributing to morning, midday, and evening peak demand respectively.
• Power ratings of most household stoves range from 1,000 to 1,500 Watt.
• Assuming an average power of 1000 Watt for electric stoves, the electricity demand from electric
cooking is shown in Table 2.
• The peak load demand on the national grid in Addis Ababa alone is about 2,900 MW. This figure is
quite significant given that the country’s total installed capacity is around 4200 MW.
Table 2 Contribution of electric cooking by household to the peak electricity demand on the national grid
Morning Mid-day peak Evening peak
Peak Demand Hours peak demand demand
(6-7AM) (11AM– 12PM) (6-7PM)
1 1800 2650 2900
Peak demand on grid (MW)
Percentage of electric stoves used at peak
50% 35% 40%
demand2
Power demand from electric cooking (MW) 900 630 720
Percentage of elec. stove contribution to
peak demand 50% 24% 25%
1. EEU, 2019
2. MECS Survey in Addis Ababa, 2020
4 Kitchen Lab Test
The kitchen lab was carried out in a single location. The purpose of the kitchen lab was to
• Perform practical experiments of cooking typical Ethiopian cuisines with charcoal stoves, electric ring
stoves, and Electric Pressure Cookers (EPCs). This allows a comparative study of the three stoves to
prepare the most common types of food cooked in Ethiopia.
• Determine the performance of the stoves in terms of energy consumption, power requirements, and
cooking time of common dishes.
• To evaluate the quality, performance, and safety of modern electric cookers to understand the
potential for adoption and likely challenges in Ethiopia.
Stoves and fuels
Three types of stoves were tested with three types of food. The source of energy for the two stoves was
electricity. The third stove was a charcoal stove (Table 3).
4
Table 3 Description of stoves and sources of energy used
Energy Rated Power (W)
Type of Stove
Source @220V
EPC Electricity 1000
Electric Rings stove Electricity 1440
Improved Charcoal Stove (“Lakech”) Charcoal *1800
*Fire power for the improved charcoal stove was the highest power achieved during this test
period
Types of food cooked
Three types of food were cooked for testing the stoves. Recipes are in Annex 1, images are in Figure 1.
i. Shiro – powder made from roasted beans or chickpea is cooked into stew
ii. Lentil Stew – a stew made from lentils with onion and other spices
iii. Meat Stew – stew made from minced or chopped meat, onion, and other spices
Electric Pressure Cooker Locally Manufactured Electric Improved Charcoal Stove
(EPC) Stove
Figure 1 cooking same mean with different stoves
Note: More tests will be done with other common foods and cooking fuels.
Fuels and Prices
A rapid assessment of cooking fuel prices was conducted in June-July 2020 in Addis Ababa. The most widely used
cooking fuels by urban households and their prices are listed in Table 4.
5
Table 4 Fuel Prices in Addis Ababa1
No. Type of fuel Purchase Unit Price (ETB/Unit)
1 *Electricity kWh 1.28
2 Liquid Petroleum Fuel (LPG) kg 45.83
3 Kerosene Litre 18.75
4 Ethanol Litre 17.00
5 Charcoal (purchased in sack) kg 12.07
6 Charcoal ( plastic bag retail) kg 16.40
*Electricity price considers tariff category for monthly consumption of 300kWh
5 Findings of cooking tests
As shown in Figure 2, cooking with either locally available electricity or charcoal appliances in Ethiopia would
normally require between 1,000 W to 1,500W power. This implies that if large numbers of households cook at
the same time this would place significant pressure on the stability of the grid system itself.
Looking closely at the operating power of the three stoves, it is possible to observe that cooking with charcoal
uses more power than electric stoves, followed by the local electric stoves. Some variations in the operating
power to cook the different dishes were also observed, especially for charcoal. The EPC registered the lowest
reading by a significant margin for each of the dishes, remaining in the range of 675 to 800W with shiro and
meat stew at each end of these readings. One other interesting observation is that the EPC self regulates the
power requirement depending on the type of food cooked.
The ability to cook with low power reduces the contribution of electric cooking on the peak power demand on
the grid. For a country such as Ethiopia that has low generation capacity (4300 MW) for the size of its
population (110 million), the widespread use of efficient cooking appliances can address multiple challenges.
Widely used electric stoves, imported or locally manufactured, are of low quality in terms of their durability
and performance. The kitchen lab test shows that the EPC reduced energy consumption from 50% to 70%
depending on the type of food cooked.
Figure 2. Operating power & fuel consumption Characteristics of stoves in Addis Ababa
1
ERG, MECS Fuel price survey, Addis Ababa, July 2020
6
The reduction of energy consumption is related to the length of the cooking time. Most typical Ethiopian
dishes require long periods of simmering and cooking, which also has energy implications. As illustrated in
Figure 3, cooking times for shiro are lowest (32 to 58 minutes), followed by lentil stew (45 to 94 minutes) and
meat stew (80 to 138 minutes). Cooking times using local electric stove were slightly lower than the EPC, with
the charcoal stove needing significantly longer to cook all three dishes. The low power requirement and low
energy consumption of the EPC, along with cooking times within the normal cooking time acceptable by the
households, gives EPCs an edge on energy criteria over the other two options.
Figure 3 Cooking time and cost using different appliances
Figure 3 also shows the cost of cooking the three dishes, using the three cooking appliances. The EPC
performed significantly better on the cost of cooking across the variety of dishes. Using the locally
manufactured electric stoves and improved charcoal stoves, the cost of cooking was between 2.3 and 10.4
times more costly than using the EPC, with foods that take longer to cook consuming more energy and thus
costing more money. The kitchen lab study shows that using an EPC on a regular basis in an average sized
household could save ETB 1,000 a year with a payback time of less than 3 years.
6 Conclusions and recommendations
Cooking Tests were conducted with three different types of stoves and two types of cooking energy sources,
electricity and charcoal. Preliminary results indicate that EPCs are not only energy efficient but are also able
to cook with only half the power required by most widely used electric stoves in the households in Ethiopia.
EPCs benefit both the households and the electricity utility by reducing the cost of cooking and the peak load
demand. More tests will be carried out with additional fuels such as kerosene, LPG, and ethanol, cooking
different types of widely cooked foods in Ethiopia to identify affordable and acceptable clean cooking
options.
As the initial cost of acquiring an EPC is slightly higher than the widely used electric stoves, fiscal measures
would be required to encourage wide scale adoption of the EPC. The EPC pays back in 3 years through the
savings in reduced electricity consumption. With effective promotion, financing, and fiscal policy measures, it
could be possible to make EPCs penetrate up to 50% of electric user households. This is equivalent to a
reduction of up to 400MW from the peak load demand.
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Annex 1: Recipe for Three Main Ethiopian Dishes
(i) Shiro
Dish 1: Shiro Wot with Injera / Injera is a flat, soft, and spongy bread made out of Teff. Wot is a sauce having
different ingredients.
Ingredients Instructions
1. In a standard pot, cook onions on medium
heat for a few minutes until they begin to
soften.
2. Add the oil and fry for few minutes.
Weight 3. Add tomatoes and salt and cook for 3-4
No. Ingredient
(g) minutes. Add water continue to simmer.
1 Weight of water 1052 4. Add red chili (red paper powder - berbere),
2 Shiro powder (chickpea or garlic and small amount of water. Cook for 4-
beans) 141 6 minutes
3 Onion 135 5. Start adding Shiro flour at a time while
4 Oil 95 continuously stirring. (Shiro gets to be thicker).
5 Chilly paper (powder) 21
6 Garlic Cloves 11 6. Let it simmer for 15- 20 minutes.
7 Salt 8 7. Add small amount of water until desired
8 Ginger (Optional) -- thickness is reached while stirring for 1-2
minutes.
8. Add the garlic, stir well for additional 2
minutes until bubbles appear.
9. Finally, ready to be served with injera on the
side.
•
Cooking Time: 25-30 Minutes / Serving: 4-6 people
8
(ii) Lentil Stew
Dish 2: Misir Wot with Injera / Injera is a flat, soft, and spongy bread made from Teff. Wot is a sauce having
different ingredients.
Ingredients Instructions
1. In a standard pot, cook onions on medium
heat for several minutes until they begin to
soften.
2. Add the oil or Butter and cook for few
Weight minutes.
No. Ingredient 3. Add tomatoes and salt and cook for 3-4
(g)
minutes
1 Weight of water 1512
Lentil (pealed and 4. Add red chili (red paper powder - berbere),
2 372 garlic and small amount of water. Cook for 4-
crashed)
6 minutes.
3 Onion 162
5. Add Misir, let it cook for 20- 25 minutes.
4 Oil 150
6. Add small amount of water until desired
5 Chilly paper (powder) 76
thickness is reached while stirring and let it
6 Garlic Cloves 8
cook for additional 8-12 minutes.
7 Salt 11
7. Finally, ready to be served with injera on the
8 Ginger (Optional) 34
side.
Cooking Time: 45-50 Minutes / Serving: 4-6 people
(iii) Meat Stew
Dish 2: Misir Wot with Injera / Injera is a flat, soft, and spongy bread made from Teff. Wot is a sauce having
different ingredients. /
Ingredients Instructions
1. In a standard pot, cook onions on medium heat for
several minutes until they begin to soften.
Weight 2. Add the oil or Butter and cook for few minutes.
No. Ingredient
(g) 3. Add tomatoes and salt and cook for 3-4 minutes
1 Weight of water 1507 4. Add red chili (red paper powder - berbere), garlic
Chopped meet or minced and small amount of water. Cook for 4- 6 minutes.
2 1141
meat
3 Onion 1391 5. Add Misir, let it cook for 20- 25 minutes.
4 Oil 315 6. Add small amount of water until desired thickness
5 Chilly paper (powder) 203 is reached while stirring and let it cook for
6 Garlic Cloves 11 additional 8-12 minutes.
7 Salt 40 7. Finally, ready to be served with injera on the side.
8 Ginger (Optional) 34
Cooking Time: 45-50 Minutes / Serving: 4-6 people
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Annex 2- Summary of Kitchen Lab Test Result
i. Performances of stoves
i) Cooking Shiro
Type of stove
Parameters Electric Ring Improved
EPC Stove Charcoal
Fuel Consumption (kWh, kg) 0.308 0.717 0.176
Ethiopian Birr (ETB) 0.39 0.91 2.12
Time (min) 41 32 58
Maximum Power (W) 674 1405 1467
Power reduction 52%
Annual Saving (ETB) 571.02
ii) Cooking Lentil Stew
Type of stove
Parameters Electric Ring Improved
EPC Stove Charcoal
Fuel Consumption (kWh, kg) 0.417 1.001 0.317
Ethiopian Birr (ETB) 0.53 1.28 3.83
Time (min) 52 45 94
Power (W) 793.5 1,447 1630
Power reduction 46%
Annual Saving (ETB) 1625.09
iii) Cooking Meat Stew
Type of stove
Parameters Electric Ring Improved
EPC Stove Charcoal
Fuel Consumption (kWh, kg) 0.464 1.628 0.509
Ethiopian Birr (ETB) 0.59 2.08 6.14
Time (min) 93 80 138
Power (W) 765.1 1404 1783
Power reduction 45%
Annual Saving (ETB) 815.34
iv) Cost of Cooking
Energy Type of Food
Type of Stove
Source Shiro Lentil Stew Meat Stew
EPC Electricity 0.393 0.532 0.592
Electric Rings stove Electricity 0.91 1.28 2.08
Improved Charcoal Stove Charcoal 2.12 3.83 6.14
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v) Cost Saving
Energy Type of Food
Type of Stove
Source Shiro Lentil Stew Meat Stew
EPC Electricity 0% 0% 0%
Electric Rings stove Electricity 133% 140% 251%
Improved Charcoal Stove Charcoal 441% 620% 938%
a) Cooking Shiro
Type of stove
Parameters Electric Ring Improved
EPC Stove Charcoal
Fuel Consumption (kWh) 0.308 0.717 1.418
Ethiopian Birr (ETB) 0.39 0.91 2.12
Time (min) 41 32 58
Maximum Power (W) 674 1405 1467
Power reduction 52%
Annual Saving (ETB) 571.02
b) Cooking Meat Stew
Type of stove
Parameters Electric Ring Improved
EPC Stove Charcoal
Fuel Consumption (kWh) 0.464 1.628 4.100
Ethiopian Birr (ETB) 0.59 2.08 6.14
Time (min) 93 80 138
Power (W) 765.1 1404 1783
Power reduction 46%
Annual Saving (ETB) 1625.09
c) Cooking Lentil Stew
Type of stove
Parameters Local Electric Improved
EPC Stove Charcoal
Fuel Consumption (kWh) 0.417 1.001 2.554
Ethiopian Birr (ETB) 0.53 1.28 3.83
Time (min) 52 45 94
Power (W) 793.5 1,447 1630
Power reduction 45%
Annual Saving (ETB) 815.34
11
