If Uganda is to provide cheap and clean electricity, the government should invest more in solar technology, a European Union envoy has said.
Kristian Schmidt, the head of delegation at the European Union in Uganda, said the country is a good place to invest in solar energy, and that the private sector should be supported in order to make more investments.
Speaking during the inauguration of a 10MW solar plant in Soroti recently, Schmidt observed that solar energy is an alternative to hydroelectric power, which is expensive to set up and takes longer to be connected to the grid.
“Solar energy may be a good alternative to hydropower which may fluctuate with water availability. If the grid stability is enhanced, allowing more solar plants to be connected to the grid, we are sure this technology will represent a very good option for affordable energy in Uganda,” he said.
Schmidt said the regulatory framework should be conducive to attract more investments.
“It is great that this is now triggering private sector interest in solar power generation. The European Union is proud that our grant contribution ensures the realisation of the Soroti solar plant, and I hope this is only just the beginning for many more to come,” he said of the project, which is the largest in East Africa.
Christophe Fleurence, the vice president of Eren Renewable Energy, said the country has vast renewable energy resources for energy production and solar alone can produce an estimated 30 per cent of the country’s energy needs.
Simon D’Ujanga, the minister of state for Energy and Mineral Development, said Uganda is set to fast-track up to 15 small-scale renewable energy generation projects (1MW-20MW).
“We have policies to attract more investors in the sector. While we focus on hydroelectric investments, the private sector should come and take on smaller renewable energy,” he said.
THE PROJECT
The $19 million Soroti solar plant is part-funded by the European Union under the Africa Infrastructure Trust Fund through the GET FiT solar facility, an initiative between the government and development partners.
The plant is made up of 32,680 photovoltaic panels. It is the first grid-connected solar plant and will generate clean, low-carbon, sustainable electricity to 40,000 homes, schools and businesses in the area.
The project was developed under the Global Energy Transfer Feed in Tariff (“GET FiT”), a support scheme for renewable energy projects managed by Germany’s KfW development bank in partnership with Uganda’s Electricity Regulatory Agency (ERA) and funded by Norway, Germany, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
Eng. Ziria Tibalwa, ERA’s chief executive officer, said the GET FiT programme helps renewable energy sources become affordable.
“The project [in Soroti] is financed by a mix of debt and equity with the senior debt facility being provided by the Netherlands Development Bank and the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund (EAIF); as government, we will continue getting partnerships to increase our electricity on the national grid,” she said.
Uganda has joined countries such as Rwanda and Kenya, which have commissioned similar solar projects with an aim of improving quality and reliability of power to spur development.
Vahid Fotuhi, the managing director of Access Power Uganda Ltd, the firm that constructed the Soroti project, said that EU contributed $9 million while Access Power and Eren Renewable Energy contributed $10 million. The two companies will manage the project for 20 years.