Page 9 - AfrElec Week 26

AfrElec
NEWS IN BRIEF
AfrElec
POLICY
Ghana risks return of Dumsor
Ghana’s cash liquidity challenges in the power sector may spur the return of Dumsor’ a term coined out of the erratic power supply Ghana experienced between 2014 and 2016, a report of the Finance Committee of the country’s Parliament has warned.
e report has however recommended for immediate measures to be put in place to “avert any potential power crisis”.
Key among the measures is the immediate activation of the Cash Waterfall Scheme which was designed purposely to address the liquidity challenges in the energy sector but has since not be in operation.
Another important measure is for the Finance Minister to conduct an audit to determine the level of indebtedness among Energy Sector State Owned Enterprises as well as the issuance of a new bond to nance the remaining legacy debts in the energy sector.
Ghana’s energy sector is inundated with growing indebtedness. e sector is currently battling with a debt portfolio of over US$4bn.
State Owned Enterprises in the energy sector like GRIDCo, ECG/PDS and NEDCo have for the past two and half years all posted losses
is is further compounded by the government’s indebtedness to Karpower to the tune of $150mn, ENI $160mn, NEDCo $162mn, IPPs $1bn, GRIDCO $171mn and Ghana Gas Company $735mn.
e growing debt portfolio in the energy sector is hugely attributed to the non- adherence to the Energy Sector Levies Act, 2015 (Act 899) as amended in 2017 (Act 946) by the Finance Minister, the Committee’s report has revealed.
e Energy Sector Levies Act was promulgated in 2015 to address the huge debt
burden and operational challenges facing State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) in the energy sector, support power generation and power supply sustainability, subsidize petroleum prices, support road maintenance as well as fund the activities of the Energy Commission.
INVESTMENT
Call for Africa to strengthen power sector regulations
Africa’s power sector policies and regulations need to be sharpened to attract investments, highlighted a technical roundtable for energy stakeholders in Abidjan
e roundtable was organized on the sidelines of the 3rd Africa Energy Market Place (AEMP), an energy sector platform for governments, private sector and development partners to review Africa’s power sector priorities.
“E ective regulation is a crucial enabler
of an improved business environment,” Callixte Kambanda, manager for energy, policy, regulation and statistics at the African Development Bank (AfDB), said in opening remarks at a donors’ roundtable on Electricity Regulatory Index (ERI) for Africa.
In 2018, the AfDB launched the ERI for Africa, a comparative, country-by-country assessment of regulatory development on the power sector. e Index diagnosed the regulatory environment, identi ed gaps and recommended appropriate interventions to address them.
In collaboration with development partners, AfDB seeks to implement the recommendations of the 2018 Index through targeted support by providing technical assistance to some 15 countries covered
in the assessment including Cameroon,
Cote d’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya,
Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe. John Irons, partnerships director at Power Africa, noted that the ERI would engender best practices among regulators in Africa’s electricity sector through the sharing of experiences. He pledged Power Africa’s commitment to supporting the Index to become more sustainable.
Collins Magalis, chief executive, Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority, reiterated the importance of the Index for the continent’s electricity sector and suggested that it should be expanded.
Initiated by the AfDB, the AEMP is a collaborative platform of major government representatives, development partners and private sector investors. It is set up to address barriers to mobilising and scaling-up private investment into the energy sector.
In addition, AEMP aims to promote high-level dialogue to fast-track reforms, transactions and initiatives through peer- to-peer learning and knowledge exchange, networking and partner engagement.
GAS-FIRED THERMAL
NNPC continues gas supply lead
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has maintained its lead as the largest supplier of gas to the nation’s power sector, the NNPC Group Managing Director, Maikanti Baru, has declared.
Baru, who made this disclosure during the inauguration, today, of a compendium produced by the Corporate Services Directorate of the NNPC in Abuja, attributed the feat to the e ective management strategy adopted by the current leadership of the corporation.
A release by the corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public A airs Division, Ndu Ughamadu, said the GMD stated that NNPC was on the part of sustainable growth with a number of critical projects that would impact the Industry value chain.
He expressed satisfaction at the level
of achievements recorded through the 12 Business Focus Areas (BUFA), a strategy guide adopted by NNPC Management
under his purview, noting that the expected results of today’s e ort would surpass current milestones.
“NPDC production has grown in leaps and bounds; NNPC is now the largest gas supplier
Week 26 03•July•2019
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