In a bid to revamp the country’s power grid, the government of Uganda is set to invest US$ 100m about Shs370Bn in the Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited (UEDCL), which took over from Umeme at the beginning of this month.
This was revealed by Eng. Ziria Tibalwa Waako, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERA).
Eng. Waako, who was speaking during baraza organised by Kigo Thinkers at the ERA head offices in Kampala a few days ago, noted that the money will enable UEDCL to upgrade power distribution network in the country over a period of 9 months.
“Umeme has never been able to reach that in any particular year,” Waako said, adding that, “Going forward, UEDCL will recover the costs through the tariff just like Umeme did, making them sustainable.”
She emphasised that this initial capital for UEDCL is seed money from the Government and not a loan.
Waako explained that ERA’s performance targets for UEDCL include reducing energy loss factors to 14.5% this year then to 13.65% next year and 12.31% by 2027, which will be a significant improvement from Umeme’s 16% by the time it handed over to UEDCL.
She also noted that access to electricity is projected to grow toward universal coverage by 2030.
Revenue for UEDCL
About revenue collection by UEDCL, Waako revealed that ERA expects consistent performance at 99.85% and above, noting that the advantages of prepaid metering systems for households and automated meters for industries will enable the company to achieve this target.
In a bid to reduce power loss, Waako said that all government Ministries, Departments and Authorities (MDAs)will also be enrolled on the prepaid three-phase meters.
UEDCL Lays 100-Day Roadmap
Meanwhile, following this significant investment by government, UEDCL has since laid out a 100-day roadmap during which the company will focus on network restoration, new customer connections and capital investments.
This was revealed by Protaze Tibyakinura, the UEDCL Chief Engineer and technical services officer, who said that the first 15 days of their operation have been tough, mainly because of the challenges they inherited from Umeme.
We have operated for 15 days now, which haven’t been easy. You would be naïve to think that they were going to be easy, but we are prepared and ready for it,” Tibyakinura said.
Speaking about revamping the power distribution network, Tibyakinura said that UEDCL has already purchased most of the equipment required to execute their work.
“We have materials in store, so we are now packaging and distributing them to our local offices. So, the new connection line will be opening next week,” he added, noting that those who had registered for connections during Umeme’s tenure will be connected at no extra cost.
UEDCL Unveils Grand Plan
Tibyakinura also revealed that starting May, UEDCL is set to roll out several capital projects which have already been approved by ERA, and they have already kicked off by purchasing 200 new transformers to replace faulty ones, and have re-erected over 300 structures that were left incapacitated after Umeme’s exit.
Tibyakinura noted that by the end of May and beginning of June, UEDCL will be rolling out and implementing larger infrastructure projects also known as ‘Greenfield Developments’, which will include network extension, new sub-stations and major refurbishments.
He explained that the objective here is for UEDCL to operate a sustainable power distribution network with minimal challenges, key among these being reduced blackouts and power losses.