Page 8 - AfrElec Week 36 2021

AfrElec INVESTMENT AfrElec

Ethiopia must break down barriers to

achieve universal power access

ETHIOPIA ETHIOPIA’S power sector must overcome difficult for the industry.
major policy and financial barriers if it is to meet The country also has a lack of access to foreign
the government’s target of universal access to exchange, which is vital for importing the neces-
power. sary inputs for off-grid solar businesses.
Energise Africa and Power for All said in a The lack of good telecom infrastructure is
recent report that financial and policy barriers holding back the development of digital payment
had held back the expansion of a decentralised and pay-as-you-go systems.
renewable energy (DRE) sector in the country. The report also warned that the market was
With a population of over 110mn people, dominated by low-quality and/or copycat solar
and growing per capita electricity consumption, lighting products.
Ethiopia could be a huge market for solar pay-as- EnergiseAfirca called for the new investment
you-go, said the report. methods to incentivise investment in rural areas,
Currently, 60mn Ethiopians have no access as well more widespread acceptance of mobile
to electricity, the highest figure for any country money payments.
in Africa. “The report not only identifies financial and
The country’s stringent regulatory barriers policy constraints to electricity access in Ethi-
both to foreign investment but also to vertical opia, but also outlines specific actions that are
integration and licensing in key sectors are also needed to break a cycle of energy poverty that
constraining the development of the DRE sector. has held back socio-economic progress for hun-
“The report shows that, while Ethiopia has dreds of millions of people,” said Kristina Ski-
some substantial barriers to the development erka, Power for All CEO.
of a successful DRE system, great opportunities The Ethiopian government is building the
exist and we will be working on the findings and Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in
recommendations of the research to continue to a bid to meet growing power demand and to pro-
look at opportunities for Energise Africa to sup- vide electricity for industry.
port the growth of renewable energy in Ethio- The dam is anticipated to become the largest
pia,” said Lisa Ashford, CEO of Energise Africa, hydroelectric power station in Africa, with a pro-
a crowdfunding platform that invests in African jected capacity of 6,500 MW, in order to meet the
renewables. needs of Ethiopia’s 110mn people.
The report found that the major policy and However, the project is as it stands is opposed
financial constraints to DRE investment in Ethi- by Egypt and Sudan, which are worried about
opia included a range of government regulations water supplied downstream on the River Nile.™
that make licensing on imports and distribution

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 36 09•September•2021