ESWATINI ENERGY MASTERPLAN TO BRING IMPRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT IN THE ENERGY SECTOR.

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PS- Winnie Stewart with Senior Officials from the Ministry and the IRENA

“The development of the Energy Masterplan provides a roadmap to guide the energy sector towards an energy future with adequate, sustainable and reliable energy supplies that are environmentally friendly and competitively priced.” These were remarks made by the Principal Secretary (PS) Winnie Stewart during the launch of the Energy Masterplan at the Royal Swazi Spa Convention Centre in Ezulwini.

Stewart said the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini was extremely grateful to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) for their support in the development of the Eswatini Energy Masterplan. “IRENA has not only supported the development of the plan but also helped develop a new institutional capacity with regard to energy planning in the country.” The PS said.
The PS also highlighted that recently IRENA assisted the country in developing the Renewable Readiness Assessment (RRA) report, which is a key document for the development of the renewable energy sector. Stewart said it is evident that the partnership between the Ministry and IRENA is really bearing fruits in the Eswatini energy sector.

“The Kingdom of Eswatini is endowed with natural resources ranging from coal, biomass, solar, wind as well as hydro. These natural resource endowments call for a comprehensive and holistic long-term energy planning process. The development of the Energy Masterplan provides a roadmap to guide the energy sector towards an energy future with adequate, sustainable and reliable energy supplies that are environmentally friendly and competitively priced.” Said the PS.

Moreover, the PS highlighted that the Energy Masterplan was therefore developed by modelling the energy system to allow optimization of wide policy assessments that consider supply security, energy access, affordability, environmental impact and financial constraints.

Stewart further highlighted that the country has achieved great strides in increasing nationwide household access to electricity which currently stands at 78%. “It is noted however that the country still has a power generation deficit of about 70% which can be met by the use of domestically available energy resources, which is why the long-term energy planning process is imperative for the transformation and sustainable growth of the energy system of the Kingdom of Eswatini, the cost of addressing the needs of the power sector has been estimated to be at USD 44 million per year to USD 200 million by 2034.” She said.

The Energy Masterplan projects outcomes of the current and planned policies in the energy system to the year 2034 and shows comparative scenario results that assume deployment of diverse technologies and measures to meet the country’s energy demand which the private sector can use in their plans. The Energy Masterplan also provides a clear technology investment roadmap, an essential certainty to investors over a multi-decade time horizon.

 

“The Energy Masterplan presents a number of opportunities while also highlighting a number of real challenges that lie ahead over the years to come.” The PS said.

Stewart stated that Government will continue to work tirelessly to create an enabling environment to support private sector participation and investment in a sustainable energy future. “We therefore call upon project developers, investors, financiers and other key stakeholders to partner with Government in its quest to realise a sustainable energy future for the Kingdom of Eswatini.” Said Stewart.

International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) expressed its appreciation to the Government of Eswatini for the excellent collaboration. Speaking on behalf of IRENA, the Head of Regions Regions Gurbuz Gonul commended the country’s efforts in developing such a comprehensive and remarkable Masterplan for the energy sector.
Gonul mentioned that IRENA and Eswatini have a strong history of successful collaboration. “In 2015, we jointly launched the Swaziland Renewables Readiness Assessment that provided recommendations for improving the enabling policy, regulatory and institutional framework for boosting the renewable energy market through targeted measures.” He said.
Gonul further highlighted that On the project facilitation side, in 2017 IRENA supported the financial assessment of two solar PV sites (with a total capacity of 5.8 MW) that have been earmarked for project development. IRENA support for site appraisals was called upon for the analysis of 3 solar sites ahead of the August 2018 auctions in Eswatini, he added.

“These joint activities can all confidently be called remarkable progress on the way forward and we applaud the country for its strong focus on renewable energy development in recent years.” Said Gonul.

Gonul in conclusion complimented the remarkable work done by the national team who thrived on the energy planning trainings provided by IRENA with a solid team structure and intensive work schedule that spanned over 2 years that led to the development of a very robust analysis which is well articulated in the Masterplan document.

 

Downlod Eswatini Energy Masterplan 2034

 

 

 

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