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ENERGY PROJECTS BUDGET HIKED BY 54%

28/02/2023 08:17:00 Mhlengi Magongo

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MBABANE – The Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini has invested an excess of E1 billion towards clean energy.

The government has allocated a budget of E1.09 billion which translates to an increase of E561 million, compared to last year’s allocation, to the Ministry of Natural Resources to implement its programmes, including access to clean water and electricity. This was mentioned by Minister of Finance Neil Rijkenberg during the budget speech on Friday.

Implementation

The minister said the Eswatini Energy Regulatory Authority (ESRA) has approved the implementation of the 75MW solar PV, 13.6MW lower Maguduza hydro power plant, 33 MW Maguga expansion, and lower Maguga hydro power plants. 80MW of biomass power generation capacity, in addition to the already approved 40MW, has been assessed and confirmed viable for an additional generation. He said the country was also assessing the market for the development of wind generation capacity. “All these projects are expected to add to the installed capacity and will contribute to the achievement of national security of supply and the target of at least 50 per cent of renewable energy in the country’s electricity mix,” he said.
While the country is strengthening its local generation, Rijkenberg said significant progress has been made with electricity access through the rural electrification programme which considers both on-grid and off-grid solutions, based on the specific location of beneficiaries.

Installation

He said they have further developed a model for the installation of distribution ready boards to assist underprivileged emaSwati that are unable to wire their houses. The minister said this would assist in fast-tracking the rate of electrification in the country and cost-effectively meet the 2030 target and maximise available resources. “Eswatini is one of the leading countries in the SADC Region that has invested substantially in boosting access to electricity, with a national electrification rate of 83 per cent.”

Access

“This is higher than the average for Africa, which stands at 40 per cent. Also, as reported by the World Bank, in 2020, Eswatini ranked eight in the SADC Region for access to clean fuels and technologies, with a score of 74.7 per cent,” he added. The minister further highlighted that the government through the Eswatini National Petroleum Company (ENPC) was working towards the development of the Strategic Oil Reserve Facility, and has completed the land-use/planning, and zoning at Phuzumoya. Meanwhile, The Eswatini Electricity Company (EEC) has projected to complete the Edwaleni -Stonehenge 132 Kilovolts (kV) project before May 30, 2024. EEC said the budget estimate for the project was E195 Million and they have spent E8 579 457.64 in payments to date.

Progress

In terms of progress, they said foundations construction was in progress for the Edwaleni Substation, demolition of existing foundations have been completed for the Stonehenge Substation and casting of foundations was already in progress. EEC also mentioned that foundations construction was also in progress for the 132kV line constructions and the assembling of steel towers would resume. The electricity company also mentioned that the high cost of importing electricity at peak times has a serious negative impact on the business which makes sales tariffs unaffordable to consumers in general. It was observed that there was a constant requirement of 11m3/s that must constantly be released to meet the demand of downstream water users including local sugar cane farmers, in South Africa and Mozambique. This water is often released during standard and off-peak periods when the cost of electricity is relatively cheap. “Therefore, the Maguga Expansion project was conceived to increase generation and reduce electricity imported at peak times and store the water in the regulating weir to maintain the 11m3/s required to satisfy other users. By way of illustration an additional 10MW unit generates about two and four times the revenue for low and high season respectively at peak times compared to standard and off-peak for 5 hours,” mentions EEC.