Arab and international companies have offered to establish new power plants from renewable resources, the Minister of Electricity, Mohamed Shaker, informed Daily News Egypt on Saturday.
A committee will be formed by the New and Renewable Energy Authority and the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) to look into the offers, he added.
The ministry of electricity aims to shift implementing new energy projects to the auctions system as it is faster than the bids system.
Furthermore, the minister explained that the offered prices for solar energy in the last bid reached 2.75 piasters per kW/h, and nearly 3 piasters per kW/h in the wind energy projects.
“We encourage the biding companies to establish power plants and sell production directly to consumers while paying transmission fees under the independent power producer (IPP) contracts system to encourage investment,” Shaker said.
The ministry of electricity aims to produce 20% of the total produced energy from new and renewable sources by 2022.
Moreover, the minister stressed that the electricity sector is currently working to separate the EETC and the Egyptian Electricity Holding Company (EEHC) and establish an operator of the transmission network and a general supplier of electricity.
He pointed out that the ministry has extended electricity subsidy for further years to avoid adding to consumer burden. After the coming complete liberalisation of prices, there will be interchangeable subsidies in which high consuming customers would pay extra money on payment tariffs which would go to the people with limited income.
Shaker explained that the ministry of electricity buys the energy produced from waste for 103 piasters. He added that the price will be fixed for five years, then the prices will be reconsidered.
During the launch of a solar energy plant in a ceremony held at Marriott hotel, Shaker said that EGP 40-50bn of investments will be allocated to improve the ultra-high voltage transmission networks. The lengths of the electricity lines were extend to 3,600km, he added.
