The Chairman of the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulator Authority, El Hadj Ibrahima Thiam, has called on its development partners, notably the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), to support the institution’s five-year strategic plan for 2014 to 2018.
He described the strategic plan as a “critical means to the realization of the regional electricity market”.
El Hadj Thiam made the appeal on 16th October 2013 in Accra, Ghana while addressing the opening of a two-day technical workshop titled “From Policy to Practice: Integrating Renewable Energy”.
He said ERERA has concluded some important studies towards the implementation of a proper regulatory framework for the development of West Africa’s electricity market as well as the capacity building of all its stakeholders.
The studies include such areas as transmission tariff methodology, contractual best practices and regional benchmarking.
According to him, the studies have begun to yield positive results as ERERA can now boast of a Directive on the organization of the ECOWAS regional electricity market and a Regulation setting the rules for the determination of royalty payments for the regional cross-border electricity exchanges.
The workshop was organized by the USAID and jointly hosted by ERERA, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission of Ghana, the Energy Commission of Ghana and NARUC.
Other high-level participants from ERERA at the workshop included Mrs. Ifeyinwa Ikeonu and Mr. Alagi Gaye, the two ERERA Council Members in charge of legal and economic affairs, respectively, as well as Mr. Oumar Bangoura, a senior legal expert and his counterpart in charge of power, Mr. Yawovi Negbegble.
