CAIRO, April 8, 2018 - Minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy Dr Mohamed Shaker held a meeting on Sunday with the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Ms Patricia Espinosa. They discussed ways of enhancing joint action to address the challenges of climate change, as part of Egypt's commitment to reducing the effects of climate change in the world. Attending the meeting were Minister of the Environment Khaled Fahmi and Ms Espinosa's accompanying delegation. During the meeting, Dr Shaker reviewed the efforts exerted and the measures taken by the electricity sector to secure power feeding and reduce emissions. The sector has taken many important steps to expand into a number of renewable energy projects, powered by the wind and the sun. A feed-in tariff (FIT) unit was set up at the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company to facilitate investment procedures, Minister Shaker said. He added that the second phase of the feed-in tariff programme was launched last October after the pros and cons of the first phase had been reviewed to adapt them to the current investment climate in Egypt. A number of agreements have been signed for the establishment of the Benban solar power plant in Aswan, which is aimed at improving basic services for citizens, the minister said. He noted that the plant would be the largest solar power plant in the world and would provide clean and renewable energy to the entire region. Dr Shaker referred to the efforts exerted by the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy and the Russian company Rosatom in recent years, to establish the first Egyptian nuclear plant in Dabaa for the generation of electricity, consisting of four nuclear units with a total capacity of 4,800 megawatts. The first unit is due to be completed by 2026, and the second, third and fourth units by the end of 2028. Regarding legislative reform, the minister pointed out that the electricity sector had taken several measures to encourage private sector investment, including restructuring electricity prices to reduce the gap between the price of conventional energy and renewable energy in a way that improved investment opportunities in renewable energy sources. Dr Shaker said that at present, the electricity sector's priority was to implement a plan to replace and renew transmission and distribution networks, to strengthen the networks and to absorb the power generated. Minister of the Environment Fahmi said that his ministry and the other ministries concerned had drawn up a plan for national contributions, to reduce the challenges of climate change, which was one of the provisions of the Paris Convention.
