The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has said it invested $36 billion in the West African Power Pull (WAPP) project. The programme is to integrate operations of the group’s national electricity grids into a unified regional energy market.
ECOWAS Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy, Mines, Water Resources, Digitalisation and Postal Services, Seiko Douka, who spoke yesterday in Abuja, said the project was to provide citizens of member states with a stable, regular and reliable power supply at a competitive cost in the medium and long term.
The WAPP project, being implemented between 2019 and 2033 for regional power generation and transmission, targets building 23,000 kilometres of interconnection lines, as well as generating 16,000 megawatts of electricity.
A breakdown of the funds showed that $25.912 billion went into production, while $10.480 billion was expended on transmission.
Douka, while disclosing some of the achievements of the regional body in the energy sector, noted that WAPP promotes and develops electricity production and transmission facilities and equipment, as well as coordinates electricity trading among ECOWAS member states.
He, however, decried the high cost of electricity in the region, thereby negatively impacting economic activities, especially industrial development.
The official also lamented the deficit in electricity production in the region despite the huge potential.
Other challenges he listed include poor energy access, low development of renewable energies and an unbalanced energy mix, which stood at 2/3 thermal to 1/3 hydro, resulting in a low proportion of solar and wind energies.
To address some of the challenges, Douka revealed that ECOWAS has been implementing the WAPP Master Plan since 2019.
The bloc also created the regional electricity market in 2018 and has intensified efforts at promoting renewable energies and other electricity access programmes for both on-grid and off-grid networks.
In terms of the electricity exchange market, the commissioner disclosed that currently,14 out of 15 countries have ratified, while the remaining country, Cabo Verde, would soon join through the implementation of a high-voltage submarine cable, with feasibility studies due to start shortly.
He noted that starting from the current year, electricity exchanges (both purchases and sales) would be possible, making tariffs more competitive and ensuring coverage of demand, which currently stands at only 60 per cent.
The commissioner held that enough independent energy producers are needed to meet domestic demand.
The meeting of Heads of State and Government held in Abuja, Nigeria, in June 2009 approved the creation of an ECOWAS Fund for the Development and Financing of the Transport and Energy Sectors. The fund was dedicated to financing regional infrastructure in the transport and energy sectors and would be financed through tax on the main export resources including agriculture, oil and gas as well as natural minerals in the region.
This is expected to generate more than $350 million yearly and is expected to consistently grow over 20 years.
