It was officially inaugurated on 8 October 2012 by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Aga Khan IV in the presence of African politicians and investors.

As of July 2014, the plant was managed by Bujagali Energy Limited, which selected Italian contractor Salini Impregilo to develop the project.

[2] The power station lies across the Victoria Nile, about 15.5 kilometres (10 mi) north-west of the central business district of the city of Jinja and immediately north of the former location of the Bujagali Falls.

In the midst of fraud investigations,[5] the first project was abandoned in 2003 when AES Energy pulled out of the deal, citing a protracted process because of objections from environmentalists.

[6][7] The project was delayed due to protracted negotiations between investors and representatives of the Soga cult of the water spirit Budhagaali, whose main shrines were seen as inextricably linked to the strength of the waterfall.

The rest of the funds were borrowed from the following international lenders:[17] In March 2018, the Board of Directors of IFC and MIGA approved plans to refinance in excess of US$400 million in construction debt owed by Bujagali Energy Limited, the project SPV.

[23][24] On 8 October 2012, the project was officially inaugurated by Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Aga Khan IV in the presence of African politicians and investors.

[26] In September 2016, the government of Uganda began negotiations with equity partners and lenders to restructure the financing of the dam to reduce the cost to the end-user to about US$0.072/kilowatt-hours.