ECOWAS Approves Fresh Policies for Regional Electricity Market

The Economic Community of West African States Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority has approved critical policies for the development of the sub-regions power market.

It also announced its commitment to protect the interests of investors and participants in the regional power market, stressing that the body would ensure that there were conducive investments in the industry.

The Chairman, ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority, also known as ERERA, Kokou Tossou, disclosed this in a statement made available to our correspondent in Abuja on Sunday by the authority.

Tossou disclosed this while addressing the Chairman, Sunon Asogli Power Plant, Qun Yang, during a courtesy visit to the power plant in Kpone, Greater Accra Region, Ghana.

The statement read in part, “He (Tossou) noted that electricity production is vital to the viability of the market, and ERERA has approved critical documents for the development of the regional power market, adding that they will also be conducive to investments in the energy sector.

“Approved documents include the Regional Electricity Market Procedures for the West African Power Pool, the WAPP Operation Manual, the Tariff Methodology for Regional Transmission Cost and Tariff, and the WAPP Regional Market Rules.

“Others include the WAPP Transmission Service Access and Use Procedures, which describes the conditions and procedures for access, as well as use and payment of transmission services in the electricity market.”

The authority stated that ERERA had also secured the approval of strategic documents such as the Directive on the Organisation of the Regional Electricity Market.

It said the directive provides for member states to amend their laws to allow for open access to the transmission network, as well as provide for third-party access to eligible customers on the other hand.

Tossou commended Asogli Power Plant, a member of the West African Power Pool, for its investments in West Africa and its high efficiency in power generation.

Earlier, the chairman of Asogli Power Plant outlined his company’s interest in the regional power market and its expansion plans to contribute to the success of the market.

Yang said the proposed plants by the firm would cover Liberia, Senegal and Sierra Leone.

According to a presentation to the ERERA delegation, the power company was operating a 560 megawatts combined-cycle natural gas plant in Ghana and was contributing 15 per cent of the natural electricity supply in Ghana.