Liberia's Minister of Mines and Energy, Wilmot Paye, has outlined "dire and bold actions" being taken by the Government of Liberia (GoL) to improve and sustain energy supply to households and businesses operating in the country, with the introduction of a net metering policy to ensure that private solar owners benefit from the sharing of excess energy to electricity grids across the country.
According to him, the current supply of energy in Liberia is around 33%.
However, Minister Paye noted that expanding access to electricity from 33% to about 75% by 2030 remains a key policy goal under the ARREST Agenda for Inclusive Development--AAID (using grid and off-grid solutions) under the Unity Party (UP) led-Government of President Joseph Nyuma Boakai.
He made these assertions at the start of the 21st Congress of African Power Utilities Association (APUA) held in Cairo, Egypt over the weekend.
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He pointed out that Liberia currently has a Hydro installed generation capacity of about 88MW, which drops to zero during the dry season (i.e. six months of waiting for the rains to start pouring before power supplies can stabilize in Monrovia and places connected to the grid).
Minister Paye said the Thermal Plant has a capacity of 38MW but the cost is prohibitively high, at US$0.33 per kWh compared to US$0.14 per kWh for hydro as of 2022.
He said energy cost varies by region and provider: with US$0.45 per kWh in one region of the country and US$0.22 per kWh in two other regions, respectively, for two private distributors; while the Liberia Electricity Corporation (LEC), charges US$0.22 per kWh with US$0.15 per kWh for social tariffs.
He disclosed that imports from neighboring countries (Cote D'Ivoire and Guinea-Conakry) now total about 80MW (50MW+30MW) being transmitted through the Transco CLSG lines, with five(5) substations built, fully energized but with no power yet to evacuate.
"Liberia's energy situation remains dire and calls for bold actions. An opportunity for investments in Generation and Distribution, with major mining companies waiting and willing to be off takers through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs)."
Bold Actions
Minister Paye further disclosed that as part of dire and bold actions towards addressing the current energy situation in the country, the government seeks to connect about 100,000 households per year from now to 2030.
This, he stated, is part of the country's five-pillar National Energy Compact.
He said a Compact Delivery and Monitoring Unit will be functional by January 2026.
He mentioned that the unit would ensure the rehabilitation and expansion of power generation, transmission, and distribution network infrastructure.
He noted that leveraging the benefits of increased regional integration under the CLSG (Côte d'Ivoire-Liberia-Sierra Leone-Guinea) network, five (5) substations have also been built, and are fully energized.
Minister Paye said embracing Distributed Renewable Energy(DRE) and clean cooking solutions remains critical elements of the access agenda.
"Incentivizing private-sector participation to unlock additional resources: proposals from Independent Power Producers are under review: IPP Steering Committee in place, appointed by the His Excellency the President of Liberia and chaired by the Vice President of Liberia, evidence of strong political will at the highest level of leadership."
He stressed that ensuring financially viable utilities that prioritize energy security and provide affordable, reliable, inclusive, sustainable and clean energy also remains a top priority of the current administration to improve the energy sector.
Changing the Old System
Minister Payer recalled that a policy decision made by the government in 2024 was to transition 86.3% of all government institutions from Postpaid Metering System to Prepaid Metering System.
He asserted that over the years, LEC was unable to recover from financial losses resulting from unpaid liabilities for electricity consumed by ministries, agencies, commissions, universities, amongst others.
He indicated that with only 23 exemptions, about 145 of the 168 Government institutions will have transitioned to the Prepaid Metering System by the end of 2026.
Minister Paye said as part of efforts to improve energy sector governance, an Energy Sector Working Group, chaired by the Ministry of Mines and Energy with membership comprising all stakeholder institutions, was established in 2024.
On the Energy Information System (EIS), Minister Paye averred that a website with real-time metrics on all key energy data in Liberia, all balance and indicators for Liberia oil, biofuels and wastes, hydro, geothermal, solar, etc.) has been established.
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He said this website is remotely accessible and can interface with other websites and systems.
Net Metering System
He noted that the government has also drafted and validated a net metering policy and hopes to have it launch along with the necessary regulations shortly.
"Under this policy, private solar owners will share excess energy with the grid and get credited. This is just one of many key reforms underway since 2024."
He said a 20-MW solar power park would be commissioned this year, and the government would also expand the capacity of Mount Coffee Hydro.
"Ongoing and funded projects are grossly inadequate for meeting demand, which stands at 400MW.
Minister Paye maintained that while the national energy access goal of 75% is ambitious, it is achievable.
"The reason for this optimism is commitment, backed by strong political will across Government, beginning at the highest leadership level."
With the Liberia Electricity Corporation targeting to connect at least 300,000 new customers, he said the goal is not out of reach.
He added that the investment climate has changed, with private-sector participation being aggressively pursued and encouraged.
