Samoa to host major electricity conference next week

29 July 2017, 12:00AM

Members of the Pacific Power Association (P.P.A) will congregate for its 26th Annual Conference and Trade Exhibition in Apia starting on Monday next week.

The four day conference will be hosted by the Electric Power Corporation (E.P.C) of Samoa; the second time E.P.C will be hosting having hosted the 5th Annual Conference in 1996.

It is anticipated that about 250 delegates representing Electric utilities, Pacific Island Governments, Development Partners and the Private Sector will be in attendance.

The conference will be officially opened on Tuesday 1st August 2017 at the Sheraton Samoa Aggie Grey’s Hotel in Apia, by the Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Dr. Sailele Malielegaoi. The keynote address to be delivered by Meg Taylor (DBE), the Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.

Discussions at the conference will centre on the theme; “Affordable Electricity for All”, which is very relevant to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (S.D.G) #7 – Sustainable and Affordable Energy for All.

Pacific Island countries have the dubious distinction of having among the highest electricity costs in the world. And as such electricity is beyond the reach of many ordinary citizens.

There are a number of contributors to the high electricity costs, however, the two main contributors directly related to utilities are affordability and accessibility. 

Affordability and accessibility are low due to high electricity tariffs, high cost of service connections and cost of wiring of the premises. The cost of service connections can be reduced by increasing the accessibility to the network.

The challenge is for the Utilities in conjunction with all stakeholders to adopt initiatives which will drive the price of electricity down and make it more affordable to customers. This will drive economic growth in the nations and also improve the livelihoods of its citizens.

Discussions will explore achieving affordable electricity through regulatory reforms, technology and innovative financing of energy resources and the utility business.

The conference in Samoa is made possible by the assistance of our Diamond Sponsors, Electropar and Pacific Energy SWP Limited.

29 July 2017, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

Upgrade to Premium

Subscribe to
Samoa Observer Online

Enjoy unlimited access to all our articles on any device + free trial to e-Edition. You can cancel anytime.

>