Energy Ministry Begins Sector Review

Energy minister Irene Muloni

By John Odyek

The fifth annual Joint Sector Review (JSR) of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development starts on Thursday and ends on Friday in Kampala.

The main purpose of the JSR is to assess progress in achieving Sector Strategic Objectives, identify strengths and weakness of policy implementation during the last financial year, and assess the extent of the achievement of the undertakings for the JSR 2014.

The JSR is organised along five (5) thematic areas, namely; Sector Governance, Power Sub-sector (Supply, Access, Financing, Regulation, Dispute Resolution); Biomass Resource Management (Demand and Supply); Oil and Gas Sub-Sector (Upstream, Midstream and Downstream); Mineral Sub-Sector (Geological Surveys and Mineral Exploration; Inspection and Mineral Production; and Geothermal Energy Development, Value Addition and Regulation).

Each of these thematic areas will be presented and discussed.

The agreed undertakings from these papers will feed into the Planning and Budgeting process for the FY 2016/17.

A statement from the ministry said Government has continued to register further positive developments in the Energy and Mineral sector.

"New power generation projects have been commissioned and others are in the development phase, implementation of the rural electrification programme is progressing well and the process of commercialization of oil and gas resources is being enhanced," said the statement.

It mentioned that over the medium term, the sector will continue to implement the following priority areas:

•increase electricity generation capacity and expansion of the transmission and distribution networks;

•increase access to modern energy services through rural electrification and renewable energy development;

•promote and monitor petroleum exploration and development in order to increase the reserve base;

•develop petroleum refining, pipeline transportation, and bulk storage infrastructure.

•streamline petroleum supply and distribution;

•promote and regulate mineral exploration, development, production and value addition; and

•inspect and regulate exploration and mining operations

•promotion of efficient use of energy;

•Monitoring geo-tectonic disturbances and radioactive emissions.