Sierra Leone’s Energy Minister, Kanja Sesay, has resigned amidst a power crisis that has plunged the country into extended periods of blackouts.
It is not immediately clear if he was asked to resign by the country’s president, Julius Maada Bio, but some reports have suggested that his decision was as a result of his belief that he was being undermined by the Ministry of Finance over the payment of the over US$40 million debt to the Turkish Karadeniz Powership Kaya Bey Company Limited (Karpowership).
The ministry has been placed under the direct supervision of President Julius Maada Bio, who will be assisted by two other officials, according to a press release from the presidency as reported by Agence France Presse (AFP).
Sesay’s resignation came hours after the government paid a total of $18.5 million to Karpowership and Transco-CLSG group.
Karpowership was paid US$17 million to reduce the outstanding debt of about US$40 million and the West Africa Power Pool Project, TRANCSCO-CLSG was paid US$1.5 million by the government to be able to receive electricity supply from Cote D’Ivoire.
Sierra Leone has been grappling with severe power cuts for some time following the decision of its main energy supplier, the Turkish company to cut off supplies due to unpaid debts owed it by the government.
Karpowership said it had reduced electricity supply to six megawatts – from 60 megawatts – to only power essential services. The Ivorian CLSG power supplier, also significantly reduced its supply to the south-eastern cities of Bo, Kenema and Koidu over unpaid arrears. it reduced its supply from 32 megawatts to 10.
The third major source of electricity to the country is the state-owned hydroelectric dam in the northern town of Bumbuna. It supplies the northern city of Makeni and nearby towns. But it currently supplies only six megawatts due to the peak of the dry season, which has left water levels at their lowest.
In 2023, the minister told Reuters that the outstanding amount “was accrued over time because the government subsidises more than half the cost the ship charges per kilowatt hour”.
He said the government had to spend more on the subsidy because it charges consumers in the local Leone currency, and converts to dollar to pay the power provider.
The contract to supply electricity to the country was signed in June 2018 with the national utility company, Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA), Ministry of Energy (MOE), and Ministry of Finance (MOF) to deploy a Powership to supply 30 MW.
In 2018, an addendum agreement was signed to increase the capacity to 50 MW; in 2020 a third addendum was signed to increase the capacity to 65 MW. Karpowership has been operational in the country since 2018 and has been supplying 80% of Sierra Leone’s total electricity needs.
The government has defended its efforts to find a solution to the crisis by pointing out that its decisions have helped in cutting down energy costs and its efforts at subsidising energy for the large population struggling with low income has put huge financial burdens on the state that it intends to resolve eventually.
Countering public claims that the government had managed the energy situation poorly and had not considered the cost implications, a report in support of the government said that the deal signed with the Turkish firm was an alternative to several poorly negotiated energy contracts explored by the country’s previous government under former President, Ernest Bai Koroma, such as the Aggreko contract, under which, a report said, EDSA was to provide fuel for the Aggreko Plant at a tariff charge of 31 U.S. Cents (31USc)/KiloWatt-hour (KWh).
It added that Koroma’s government had also negotiated an agreement with Karpowership to pay the company 19.596 USc/KWh.
The SLPP renegotiated the charge to a lesser 16.4 USc/KWh, guaranteeing annual savings of US$9 Million, and US$27 Million if the agreement extended to three years, the report said.
Some analysts in the country have said that the government would need to find alternatives to improve power generation and also cut the huge resources spent on subsidising energy, a step that many say could effectively cut millions from access to electricity.
It appears that the huge costs invested in subsidising energy, while it has kept costs within the reach of many, has also placed a huge burden on government finances which, many say, cannot be sustained.
According to some opinions, the nation’s energy crisis is a symptom of a culture of corruption and lack of transparency that has hindered progress and left its people in the dark, and this would have to be tackled vigorously by the government to free up resources that should be invested in alternative power solutions for the country. They say the companies are justified in cutting supplies as they were faced with financial insolvency.
This energy crisis, many say, has triggered calls for the government to search for alternatives to the current energy supply structure and to source for resources that would address the situation or be faced with serious economic consequences.
