The company is a main key in the Ethiopian energy sector.

The company was formed in 1956 as the Ethiopian Electric Light & Power Authority (EELPA), which bundled all Ethiopian activities around electricity in a single organization.

[2] In 1996, EELPA was split into the Ethiopia Electric Authority (EEA), taking over all regulating activities and a company, Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo), bundling all activities from power generation to household delivery.

Ethiopian Electric Power was formed by Council of Ministers Regulation No.302/2013.

[3] The first (2013) CEO of Ethiopian Electric Power was Azeb Asnake, replaced in August 2018 by Abraham Belay.