African School of Regulation

Off-grid solar systems: Towards sustainable and scalable business models
2023-09-26 15:00 - 2023-09-28 18:00 UTC
About the Event​The conference will focus on the specification of the fundamental regulatory conditions, business model designs, and financial approaches that are necessary for the off-grid solar industry to fully play its role in achieving universal electricity access. Participants – from off-grid solar companies, private investors, policy makers, regulatory agencies, development financial institutions, think tanks, and academia – will debate to arrive at the definition of actionable regulatory and business models for off-grid solar systems that can attract investors, be deployed quickly, build all the OGS systems included in the least cost electrification master plan to achieve SDG7, and ensure permanence of reliable and affordable electricity supply. The applicability of lessons learned with minigrids to standalone solar systems, will be also examined.

French TranslationSimultaneous translation will be provided for those who wish to listen in French.

Recordings

Videos of the online sessions are now available:

Watch here

Conference Brochure

Speaker’s Bio

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Presentation for Day 1

Presentation by Koen Peters (Executive Director of the global association for the off-grid solar energy industry, GOGLA)

Presentation by Prof. Ignacio Pérez-Arriaga (Interim Director, African School of Regulation, ASR)

Presentation for Day 3

Wrap up of days 1 and 2. Open issues and key lessons learned.

Presentation by Ignacio Pérez-Arriaga (Interim Director, African School of Regulation).

Reading Materials

The debates at the Conference will be maintained at an expert level. The reports below may be used as introductory readings prior to the Conference.

Recommended Readings

The Integrated – Distribution – Framework – IDF – EN

Le-cadre-de-distribution-integre-CDI- FR -1

Off-Grid Solar Market Trends Report 2022: Outlook – Executive Summary

Additional readings

Powering Progress: The Role of Regulation in Fast-tracking Electricity Access
2023-08-04 14:00 - 15:00 (Europe/Helsinki)
About the Event​According to the Electricity Regulatory Index for Africa 2022, Uganda, Egypt, Senegal, Ghana, and Kenya emerged as the leading countries in terms of well-established regulatory frameworks. These nations have witnessed positive responses from their utility providers in adhering to regulatory instructions whilst regulators are forward-looking and capable of exerting the necessary regulatory authority over the regulated entities. From 2018 to 2022, Uganda ranked first in the country’s ERI Survey, making it an interesting case study for the ASR Talk held. How had Uganda been able to maintain its upward trend? What regulatory frameworks were put in place? Has Uganda’s high reputation for implementing sound regulatory policies yielded any result in fast tracking electricity access in the country?

French TranslationSimultaneous translation will be provided for those who wish to listen in French.

Recordings

The recording of the ASR Talk is now available:

Watch here

Guest Expert’s ProfileENG. Ziria Tibalwa Waako is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA), a position she assumed on 23rd March 2017. She holds an MSc. and BSc. Electrical Engineering, both from Makerere University, and a Master of Business Administration in Leadership from Walden University, USA. Eng. Ziria is a Registered Engineer with the Uganda Institute of Professional Engineers and the National Engineers Registration Board; as well as a Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) of New York, United States of America. She was awarded the Excellent Performance Engineers award by the National Engineers Registration Board at its 50th Anniversary celebrations in 2019. Previously, Ziria held the position of the Director of Technical Regulation at the Electricity Regulatory Authority, charged with the technical performance of Uganda’s Electricity Supply Industry, a role she assumed on 20th December 2012. Before joining ERA, Eng. Ziria worked with Uganda Electricity Board (UEB) for 9 years and later with Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) for 12 years, where she acquired a wealth of knowledge and experience. She rose through the ranks serving as Operational Planning Engineer, Senior Planning Engineer, and Principal Planning Engineer.

Guest Expert

ENG. Ziria Tibalwa Waako

CEO, Electricity Regulatory Authority, Uganda

La Délégation de Service Public : Un outil pour déployer l’accès à l’électricité pour tous dans les pays Africains? Un regard sur l'Afrique francophone
2023-05-24 13:00 - 14:30 (Europe/Helsinki)
À propos de l’événement​Ce webinaire vise à donner l’occasion à des décideurs politiques, des opérateurs électriques (publics ou privés), des régulateurs, des universitaires de partager leurs expériences et d’explorer les moyens d’adapter les modèles de DSP pour accélérer l’accès à l’électricité pour tous – en et hors réseau – en Afrique subsaharienne.

TranslationSimultaneous translation will be provided for those who wish to listen in English.

Video Recording

Recording

The webinar video recording is now available:

Watch here

Brochure

PROFILS D’EXPERTS

Private Investment in Africa's Energy Infrastructure: The Role of Regulation
2023-05-17 15:00 - 16:00 UTC
About the Event​ The African Union, on June 4th, 2021, officially launched the African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM), the world’s largest continent-wide energy trading program meant to interconnect all 55 African Union Member States through an efficient, affordable, and sustainable electricity market (AU 2021). The first phase of AfSEM was envisaged to be achieved by 2023, reaching full operationalization by 2040. The goal was to give African households, businesses, and industries more secure, sustainable, reliable, competitive, and affordable energy. To achieve its objectives and targets, Africa needed significant private investment in electricity infrastructures, from generation to networks and off-grid systems.Creating a stable, transparent, and predictable environment to attract private investment required designing and implementing sound policy and regulatory frameworks. This edition of the ASR Talk discussed how to advance African electricity markets’ openness, attractiveness, and readiness for private sector participation through fit-for-purpose policy and regulatory reforms. The dialogue also discussed RES4Africa and UNECA’s main findings of their Regulatory Reviews of Electricity Markets in 16 African countries.

ASR Talk Recording

Recording

ASR Talk Recording now available:

Watch here

Speakers​

Dr Yohannes G. Hailu, Energy Policy Expert, UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA)

Andrea Renzulli, Programme Manager, Policy and Regulations, RES4Africa Foundation

Power Pools in Africa: Releasing the Potential of Regional Power Trade
2023-05-09 14:00 - 2023-05-11 17:00 (Europe/Helsinki)
About the Event​

French TranslationSimultaneous translation will be provided for those who wish to listen in French.

Conference Brochure

Conference Recordings

Recordings

Videos of the online sessions are now available:

Watch here

Speakers’ Bio

Reading Materials

The policy dialogue will be maintained at the expert level. The following background readings for each session introduce the key topics to be discussed during the conference.

The development of African power pools

Regional institutions of African power pools

Transmission cost allocation in regional markets

Regional Power trade and Bilateral Contracts

The development of African power pools

Presentations for Day 1

The introductory presentations for Day 1 are now available for download

Session 1: Regional organisations and infrastructure planning

Session 2: Market rules & transmission regulation

Open issues and key lessons learned

Policy Brief

The conference brief below describes the Policy Dialogue on Renewable Generation and Regional Power Trade in Africa, succinctly presents its objectives and program, and sums up its findings and takeaways. Several annexes and website links to the conference readings and presentations provide ample information for those interested in going deeper into the topic. Kindly visit the following link for more information: https://africanschoolregulation.org//wp-admin/post.php?post=3291&action=edit

The Policy Dialogue on Renewable Generation and Regional Power Trade in Africa – Conference Brief

Sustainable and Scalable Minigrid Business Model
2023-04-12 15:00 - 16:00 UTC
Recordings

The recording of the ASR Talk is now available:

Watch here

According to estimates by the mini-grid industry and well-known international organisations, more than 200,000 mini-grids must be deployed in Africa to achieve the goal of universal electricity access in the continent by 2030. Most of the large volume of needed capital must come from private investors. This will only be possible if business models for mini-grids can be defined that are financially viable and can maintain this condition permanently, i.e., if the business models are sustainable. In addition, it is necessary that these business models can be scaled up to the necessary dimension, both in terms of the required financing and the technical and managerial capability of the mini-grid developers to install all the mini-grids identified in the electrification plan.

Following the ASR Online Conference on Sustainable and Scalable Mini-grid Business Models and the ESMAP 7th Mini Grids Action Learning Event, there were some outstanding issues that we wanted to probe into further under the ASR Talk event.

The ASR Talk was a live online event with registered participants, a moderator, one or two discussants, and an expert discussing a particular topic of interest.

Speakers

Moderator

Ignacio Perez-Arriaga

Interim Director, African School of Regulation

Guest Speaker

Clemencia Torres de Mästle

Lead for the Global Facility for Mini Grids, Energy Sector Management Assistance Program, ESMAP, World Bank

Discussant

Elias Zigah

Researcher, ASR

Discussant

Carol Ofafa

Project Associate, ASR

Reading Material

The reading materials below introduce the key topics to be discussed at the ASR TALLK.

Working Paper by Ignacio Perez-Arriaga

Presentation by AMDA

Presentation by Ignacio Perez-Arriaga

Policy Dialogue: Renewable Generation and Regional Power Trade in Africa
2023-02-21 00:00 - 2023-02-23 23:59 UTC | Centro de Convenciones Norte, IFEMA RECINTO FERIAL DE IFEMA MADRID, Av. del Partenón, 5, Madrid, 28042, Spain
The International Renewable Energy Conference (IREC) brought representatives from business, governments, civil society, science, and academia, all of whom participated in discussions and debates with the objective of building collective know-how to advance renewables at the international, national, and sub-national levels. The IREC was hosted by a national government and was held biennially. The Government of Spain had teamed up with REN21 to organize the next IREC. SPIREC was held in Madrid from 21-23 February 2023.

At the international SPIREC Conference, the opportunity existed to set up a policy dialogue between African and European role players in a context where extensive networking and broader dialogue were possible. Broader dialogue and brainstorming might have included deliberations on the design of an African Green Deal and how to redesign the rules of the international order to allow for Just Energy Transition in Africa.

Event Brochure

Profile of Participants

Reading Materials

The policy dialogue will be maintained at the expert level. The following background readings for each session introduce the key topics to be discussed during the policy dialogue.

Section 1: The development of African power pools

Section 2: Regional institutions of African power pools

Section 3: Transmission cost allocation in regional markets

Section 4: Regional Power trade and Bilateral Contracts

Companion Reading for Section 1: The development of African power pools

Slides

Section 1: The development of African power pools

Section 2: Regional institutions of African power pools

Section 3: Transmission cost allocation in regional markets

Section 4: Regional Power trade and Bilateral Contracts

Section 5: Wrap up

Conference Brief

Minigrid Industry Roadmap
2023-02-16 15:00 - 17:00 UTC
Our partner, Husk Power, and other top industry leaders gathered on February 16th, 2023, for a thought-provoking dialogue on “Unlocking the Potential of Minigrids.” We hope you didn’t miss out on the chance to gain valuable insights and learn what is needed to create long-term viability and scale for the minigrid industry.

Register now: https://buff.ly/3X4w1aJ

Online Conference "Sustainable and Scalable Minigrid Business Models"
2023-01-23 15:00 - 2023-01-25 18:00 (Africa/Addis_Ababa)
About the event

A high-level policy dialogue was held to take stock of the latest advances in technology, regulation, business models, and financing, as well as relevant positive and negative experiences in the deployment of minigrids.

Recordings

Videos of the online sessions are now available:

Watch here

Objectives

To define key features of actionable regulatory business models for minigrids, which will enable the scaling up minigrids to support the achievement of SDG7.

Develop actionable recommendations that can be adopted by key decision makers at different levels of responsibility in the deployment of minigrids ad standalone solar systems.

Target audience

Minigrid developers, government representatives (particularly those working in the energy sector), representatives from development finance institutions, academia and anyone else with an interest in minigrids.

Event schedule

ASR MINIGRID CONFERENCE- BROCHURE V001.2Download

Speakers, moderators and panellists

ASR MINIGRID CONFERENCE: PROFILES-SPEAKERS-MODERATORS-PANELLISTSDownload

Conference reading material

Working paper

The debates at the Conference will be maintained at expert level. The working paper below introduces the key topics to be discussed at the Conference. It contains a list of references and recommended reading materials which may be used as introductory readings prior to the Conference.

SUSTAINABLE AND SCALABLE MINIGRID BUSINESS MODELSDownload

Stocktaking in the energy sector in Uganda – Electricity distribution, Final report

Example of an integrated electrification plan to achieve full electricity access by 2030 including a techno-economic plan, a definition of recommended business models and a comprehensive viable financial plan that encompasses the three electrification modes:

Stocktaking in the energy sector in Uganda – Electricity distributionDownload

Presentation Slides

What does it take to have a sustainable & scalable minigrid business model?Download

Presentation by AMDA

Presentation-by-AMDADownload

Lessons learned

LESSONS-LEARNEDDownload

International Conference on Concessions in the Power Sector – Learning from Practitioners
2022-02-28 14:00 - 2022-03-02 17:00 UTC
About the Event​The African School of Regulation (ASR), the MIT Energy Initiative, and the World Bank, in collaboration with the Rockefeller Foundation and the Global Commission to End Energy Poverty, invited participants to a high-level online conference championed by the Government of Ghana on the role of concessions in accelerating the process of achieving universal energy access in developing countries. The conference took stock of the latest advances in technology, regulation, and financing in the power sector, offering participants a unique opportunity to learn from emblematic concession experiences. It eventually enabled its participants to address major challenges in the design and implementation of concessions and to extend electricity access in selected countries. The peer-led conference was highly interactive and open to a limited number of experienced participants representing power companies, private investment firms, ministries, regulatory agencies, development finance institutions, and universities. The conference aimed to build capacity and promote concessions in power sector reforms. The organizers sought to help bridge the gap between public and private stakeholders and attract investment in the distribution sector.

French TranslationSimultaneous translation will be provided for those who wish to listen in French.

Conference Brochure

Day 1 Panelists’ Bio

Day 2 Panelists’ Bio

Day 3 Panelists’ Bio

Reading Materials

The policy dialogue will be maintained at the expert level. The following background readings for each session introduce the key topics to be discussed during the conference. Kindly visit https://bit.ly/3WRiV2f to download additional reading materials, such as Case studies; Concessions Review and Analysis.

Introduction to concessions, Ignacio Pérez-Arriaga

Lessons learned presented by Ignacio Pérez-Arriaga

Conference Summary

Implementing concession: general success/failure factors from past experiences
