The event will include the country’s regulator, EWURA, the Tanzania Traditional Energy Development Organization (TaTEDO) and all of the major green mini-grid developers. Investors representing more than US$1 billion will also be present in the room.
The Rural Energy Agency has been responsible for stimulating the market and helping Tanzania become East Africa’s main source of new mini-grid developments. World Resources Institute released a report in Washington which pinpointed 109 mini-grids – serving over 180,000 people in the country. It has 157.7MW of mini-grid installed capacity including biomass, hydro, hybrid, fossil fuel and solar systems.
The upcoming year will see activity increase with over 50 projects which have been identified by PV Tech’s publisher, Solar Media. Of these, many will be based on green generation, mainly solar PV and hydro and this will see both displacement of diesel and an increase in the number of homes and businesses with access to electricity.
“This summit is destined to go beyond the normal conversation about the need for energy access and to showcase some fantastic productive use case studies and really focus on how the international community can collaborate with capital,” said Jo Wilkinson, the event’s director. “We have to mobilize both international and local funding to the tune of billions but we also know we need to get there faster so attendees at the event will focus on the practical action next week,” she added.
The Rural Energy Agency is an autonomous body which sits under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Energy and Minerals. October 2017 saw its tenth year of operation. Its stated role is to promote and facilitate rural energy development. The agency has been working closely with industry in Tanzania to stimulate the mini-grid market.
