RENEWABLE energy power developers providing mini (off)-grid electricity in rural areas should not milk their customers through overcharging as the move would render the idea of attracting the private sector in power generation irrelevant, a senior government official has warned.
Dr Juliana Pallangyo, Deputy Permanent
Secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Minerals, said in Dar es Salaam
yesterday that the government understood that mini-grid developers need
to set up tariffs that will help to them recoup investment costs but
there were some who charge too high tariffs making it too expensive to
end users.
“Some are charging too high tariffs
which makes electricity very expensive. We remind them they need to make
sure their electricity is affordable to the users,” she said during the
opening of a two-day Africa Energy Forum.
Off the Grid conference has drawn
together key players in the energy sector to deliberate on investment
opportunities in the lucrative sector.
She said the government is keen to
support renewable energy power developers interested in installing
mini-grid technologies, suitable for deployment of systems such as
solar, wind and small hydro suited for communities in off-grid areas to
increase electricity connectivity in the country.
Tanzania is among East African countries
that have adopted renewable energy technologies including solar,
geothermal and wind power as it implements a national energy policy
whose goal is to increase the country’s overall electricity connectivity
to 50 per cent by 2025 and to at least 75 per cent by 2033.
The National Rural Electrification
Programme (2013– 2022) under which the policy is implemented, includes
both ongrid and off-grid solutions. Mini-grids are the most economically
viable means for electricity connection in rural areas not served by
the national grid but there are concerns of high tariffs charged to
customers which must be addressed, said Dr Pallangyo.
“There is no doubt minigrids make more
sense than grid extension in large parts of the country, but some
developers have very expensive tariffs,” he noted.
The Minister of State in the
Vice-President’s Office (Union Matters and Environment), January
Makamba, said high power tariffs charged by some mid-grid developers
were a serious cause of concern as it defeated the whole purpose of
inviting private developers in energy generation.
He said as the idea of hybrid mini-grid
systems technology was the most economically viable and relevant to
increase access to electricity, some developers were using flimsy
excuses to cash in from the poor rural dwellers.
He gave an example of a rural area where
he saw a developer charging 500/- per one bulb per day, saying such
high tariff could not be justified and make mockery of the intention to
increase electricity connection through private investments.
About 200 investors, facilitators and
off-grid developers are attending the conference organised by EnergyNet
Limited to unleash investment opportunities in the energy sector, as the
government adopted renewable energy technology to scale up electricity
connectivity to the people.
The Business Development Director of
EnergyNet Limited, Alex Moulds, told the `Daily News’ that the
conference had focused on off-grid and minigrid energy project
opportunities in Tanzania, where small scale renewable investors have
already ventured in a far more dynamic and profitable way than ever
before.
He said they were thankful to the
government, ministry of energy and minerals and institutions under it
for the great support in organising the conference which are aimed at
facilitating investments in the energy sector.
“We always have the support of the
Tanzania’s government, Minister, TANESCO, EWURA (Energy and Water
Utility Regulatory Authority) and REA (Rural Electrification Agency).
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