The Principal Deputy Financial Secretary (PDFS) in the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Mathew Dingie has encouraged the Ministry of Energy to limit its 2021 budget to the completion of projects they had started.
He made this statement on Friday October 2, 2020 while superintending the budget presentation by the Ministry of Energy during ongoing bilateral budget discussions between the two ministries in the conference hall of the Ministry of Finance in Freetown.
“The FY 2021 Budget will focus on projects that have already started. We don’t want to start new projects we can’t complete, so I am encouraging you to remove the new projects in your budget and defer them to the 2022 budget,” he admonished.
According to him, the inclusion of new projects will increase the 2021 budget, and in the process make delivery very slow.
After the presentation of the Ministry’s FY 2021 budget, the PDFS assures the Ministry of Energy that the Finance Ministry will be magnanimous to give them the same amount they received for FY 2020 (Le 42, 153,000,000), giving that energy is key in the development drive of the country.
Old Projects in the Energy Ministry’s presentation are 6MW Solar Park Newton, 10MW Solar Park, 5MW Solar Power Plant Bo/Kenema, 12MW Solar Power Plant Bo, Power import – Cote D’Ivoire/Guinea, Bo and Kenema Rehabilitation, and 66kV Transmission Line Project, Bumbuna to Waterloo 225KV Transmission Line Project and Renewable & Rural (Off-Grid) Energy.
The Energy Ministry deliverables for 2021 are 225KV Transmission network and 66KV Transmission Networks, Southern Corridor transmission Line and Sub-stations (66KV Network), Eastern Corridor transmission Lines and Sub-stations (66KV), Extension of Solar mini-grids to 100 Chiefdoms Headquarters, Studies on Kailahun Luawa Foiya Hydro Power Dam (12MW), installation of solar Street Lights – nationwide, Maintenance of Power Plants – nationwide, Generation of six districts Headquarter Towns (Bonthe, Pujehun, Moyamba, Kailahun, Kabala and Kambia, Construction of 100KW of solar power plant for Njala University, and Electrification of Mile 91.
“By the end of 2021, we want to ensure that 23 % of Sierra Leoneans have access to electricity compare to only 16 % in 2018,” according to the Director of Energy Mr. Benjamin Kamara.