Incentives for Renewable Energy in Southern Africa: Case Study of Zambia
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Investment Incentives for Renewable Energy in Southern Africa: Case study of Zambia H. Walimwipi, Snow Systems Zambia December 2012 www.iisd.org/tkn © 2013 The International Institute for Sustainable Development © 2013 The International Institute for Sustainable Development Published by the International Institute for Sustainable Development. About IISD The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) contributes to sustainable development by advancing policy recommendations on international trade and investment, economic policy, climate change and energy, and management of natural and social capital, as well as the enabling role of communication technologies in these areas. 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Investment Incentives for Renewable Energy in Southern Africa: Case study of Zambia December 2012 H. Walimwipi, Snow Systems Zambia Email: [email protected] or [email protected] TKN POLICY BRIEF DECEMBER 2012 Investment Incentives for Renewable Energy in Southern Africa: Case study of Zambia ii Table of Contents Executive Summary ..........................................................................................................................................................................................1 1.0 Definitions and Methodology ..............................................................................................................................................................2 2.0 Overview of Zambia’s Energy Sector ................................................................................................................................................3 2.1 Current Status ..................................................................................................................................................................................3 2.2 Energy Generation and Transmission .......................................................................................................................................3 2.2.1 Electricity ...............................................................................................................................................................................3 2.1.2 Petroleum ..............................................................................................................................................................................5 3.0 Projected Energy Demand and Key Planned Projects .................................................................................................................6 3.1 Local .....................................................................................................................................................................................................6 3.2 Regional .............................................................................................................................................................................................6 3.3 Renewable Energy Resource Potential .....................................................................................................................................7 3.4 Role of the Private Sector..............................................................................................................................................................9 3.4.1 Institutional, Industry Structure and Ownership .....................................................................................................10 3.4.2 Industry Structure and Ownership .............................................................................................................................. 11 3.5 Key Legislation and Regulation ................................................................................................................................................. 12 4.0 Investment Incentives for Renewable Energy .............................................................................................................................. 13 4.1 Government Management of Investment Incentives Programs.................................................................................... 13 4.2 Overall Investment Incentive Framework and Landscape .............................................................................................. 13 4.2.1 Financial Incentives .......................................................................................................................................................... 15 4.2.2 Fiscal Incentives ............................................................................................................................................................... 15 4.2.3 Other Incentives ............................................................................................................................................................... 16 5.0 Discussion and Analysis ...................................................................................................................................................................... 18 5.1 Stakeholder Impressions ............................................................................................................................................................. 18 5.2 Estimates of the Costs and Benefits ...................................................................................................................................... 19 6.0 Conclusion and Recommendations ................................................................................................................................................20 References ........................................................................................................................................................................................................22 TKN POLICY BRIEF DECEMBER 2012 Investment Incentives for Renewable Energy in Southern Africa: Case study of Zambia iii Executive Summary Zambia has recently experienced significant growth in consumption of petroleum products. The consumption of diesel has grown by at least 30 per cent, from an average of approximately 350,000 tonnes per day in 2007 to 500,000 tonnes per day in 2010 (ERB, 2010a). This growth is mainly attributed to increased demand from mining. The electricity sector has recovered from the 2009 decline caused by the global economic crisis, as evidenced by the fact that consumption increased by 7 per cent between 2009 and 2010—from 7,279 gigawatt hours (GWh) to 7,789 GWh (ERB, 2010a). Yet there exists huge potential for the development of renewable energy sources, including solar (thermal and photovoltaic); mini/micro-hydro; biomass (agricultural wastes, forestry waste, industrial/municipal organic wastes, energy crops and products and animal waste); geothermal, and wind. The private sector has an increasingly important role to play in the exploitation of renewable energy, and Zambia’s government offers a range of economic incentives to encourage investment. These include fiscal incentives (tax incentives that include income tax, value-added tax, and customs duty incentives), non-fiscal incentives (risk cost sharing, support of land acquisition, etc.) and a capital-smart subsidy (for projects developed under the Rural Electrification Authority). Private sector actors in the market have reported that progress in the development of incentives, including the establishment of the Zambia Development Agency, has improved the prospects for projects. In particular, the loan guarantees extended to the Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (ZESCO) and the negotiated packages of incentives were