I. Modalities to become independent electricity producer in Cameroon
The law 98/022 of 24 december 1998, governing the electricity sector
indicates that, activities in the electricity sector shall be placed under one
of the following legal schedules:
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The concession;
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The licence;
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The authorization;
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The declaration;
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The free scheme.
The activities provided above shall entail the payment of royalties, the
rate, collection and distribution of which shall be defined statutory
instruments.
1. Common
provisions on concessions (Du régime de la concession)
All electricity production activities and State lands, in particular
hydroelectricity, as well as electricity conveyance and distribution, shall be
done under a concession, unless otherwise provided by this law.
The concession agreement shall determine the duration and conditions of
suspension, expiry and revision, renewal and cancellation of the contract by
the granting authority, as well as the settlement of disputes. The owners of
hydroelectric power stations as well as conveyors and distributors shall be
selected in accordance with a procedure which shall be fixed by statutory accordance.
There are specific provisions on production concession; specific
provisions on conveyance concessions; specific provisions applicable to
electricity distribution concessions.
With regard to the first, production concessions shall define the
conditions for operating specific installations designed to generate energy
from any source and sell or supply such electricity to third parties. They
shall also define the producer’s right and obligations within the framework of
his activity.
Producers shall be subjected to special obligations required for the
general interest, in particular the obligation to supply electricity to
distributors or bulk users in an interrupted manner, except in cases of overpowering
circumstances. It shall be the duty of Electricity Sector Regulatory Board to
assess the cases of overpowering circumstances referred above.
2.
The licence
schedule (Du régime de la licence)
Licences shall be awarded for :
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The independent
production of electricity;
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The sale of high and
medium voltage electricity power;
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The import and export
of electricity.
The electricity Sector Regulatory Board shall receive and process applications for licences relating to the activities referred above and shall forward applications to the service in charge of electricity. Independent electricity producers shall produce and sell electricity to distributors or to bulk users, in accordance with the provisions presented above.
3. Regulations
relating to authorization, déclarations and freedom to install electricity
lines (Du régime de l’autorisation, de la déclaration et de la liberté)
3.1. The authorization schedule
The following shall fall under the authorization schedule under
conditions laid down by statutory instruments:
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Private production of
more than 1 MW;
- Setting up and
operating electricity distribution installations with a view to directly or
indirectly supplying power of not more than 100 kW;
- Installation of
private electricity lines along or across a highway or running horizontally at
a distance of less than 10 m from an existing electric, telephone or telegraph
line situated on the public property.
The authorization may be granted only where there is no public
electricity service due to the lack or shortage of electricity production and
conveyance means in the area concerned.
3.2. The declaration schedule
Where the output o installations for personal production of electricity
is more than 100 kW and less than 1 MW, the owner of such installations shall
be bound to make a declaration to the Electricity Sector Regulatory Board
before operating said installations.
3.3. The free schedule
Installation of private electricity lines shall be done without restriction
where the facilities are entirely located on private property, provided such
lines shall not run along or go across a highway, and that the wires shall at
no point run horizontally at less than 10 m from an existing electric,
telephone or telegraph line on public property. Installation of private
electric lines must meet the required standards laid down by the service in
charge of electricity.
The setting up and operation of installations for personal production of
electricity other than in hydroelectric power stations whose output is not more
than 100 kW shall not be subject to any legal or administrative procedure. Such
installations shall be considered as domestic installations.
II. All the hydroelectric projects ongoing
1. LOM PANGAR
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Owner : Electricity Development Corporation (EDC)
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Capacity of the dam: 7 billion m3, he is endowed of a factory
electricity production of 30 MW.
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Signing of the contract: 12 august 2011
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Work begins: November 2011
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Financial partner: China International Water and Electric Corporation
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Cost of the project: 150 billion CFA F (20% by Cameroonian government
and 80% by international institutions)
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Completion: 38 months after the beginning of the works (2014)
2. MEMVE’ELE
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Installed capacity: 201 MW
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Financial partner: Eximbank – China.
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Signing of the contact: May 2011
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Cost of the project: 243 billion CFA F
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Completion: 2016
3. HYDRO MEKIN
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Owner: Mekin Hydroelectric Development Corporation
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Creation the company: October 2010
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Capacity of the dam: 940 millions m3
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Installed capacity: 12 MW
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Financial partner: China
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Cost of the project: 22 billion CFA F
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Completion: 2013
4. Kribi Power Development Corporation (KPDC)
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Description: He concerns a production of electricity from natural gas
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Prime contractor: KPDC
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Installed capacity: 216 MW
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Work begins: 2010; resumption of the works: June 2011
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Financial partner: AES-SONEL - Cameroonian government
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Cost of the project: 176.3 billion CFA F
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Completion: September 2012
