29 Feb 2024

The Regional Energy Regulators Association (RERA) has been urged to work hard to live its mandate.

Speaking at the regional body’s annual conference in Gaborone on Wednesday, the Minister of Minerals and Energy, Mr Lefoko Moagi, said the regional umbrella association, which is made of energy regulators from the member state, should also take advantage of the significant benefits from economies of scale and shared resources.

“This can be achieved by creating common frameworks for cross border energy trade in the region and to ensure harmonised regulatory frameworks across the SADC region. These are fundamental and sound reasons for cooperation,” he said.

Mr Moagi said with such integration and harmonisation, the region could easily boast of diverse supply of sources of energy.

The RERA was established to take care of pertinent energy issues in the region, priority among such being to ensure that energy infrastructure in the SADC region was properly integrated and benefited all.

“It is obvious that SADC region’s energy sector is one of the most attractive to investors for various reasons, such as effective and operational energy market, great opportunity for infrastructure development, effective and sound regulation, and the certain and available market,” he said.

Mr Moagi said RERA had achieved a lot in terms of developing frameworks for the regulation of the energy sector, especially the electricity sub-sector.

He cautioned that more needed to be done to encompass other emerging sub-sectors such as natural gas, biofuels and green hydrogen.

He spoke of the need to establish ways in which investors could easily facilitate innovation and quick implementation of new technologies to benefit the people.

Mr Moagi also said a major concern in pursuit of clean energy was carbon emission by the transport sector, thereby hailing Botswana’s commitment to developing an e-mobile economy through manufacturing electric vehicles and their components.

He urged other member states to prepare for this inevitable development.

“As a region that strives for integration and harmonisation, it is necessary to share success stories towards the achievement of this and collectively combat challenges,” he said.

Mr Moagi said that in that regard, regulation therefore played a crucial role in ensuring seamless and smooth transition as well as blurring differences across borders. End.sef.bopa.29.02.24 ends