"SANEA Leads Action on Energy Poverty"
Brian Statham, Chairman of the South African National Energy Association (SANEA), was appointed Chairman of the Energy Access Partnership (EAP) during its launch at the World Economic Forum Summit in Dar Es Salaam, May 2010.
"A decision was made at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in 2005 to embark upon a process of defining and demonstrating a successful model to address chronic energy poverty in developing countries around the world, focusing on business approaches and empowerment of local communities. The EAP intends to scale up and replicate this market based community energification model," Statham said.
The founding partners Eskom, BC Hydro and Vattenfall joined by World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), World Energy Council (WEC), Swedfund, Manitoba Hydro and the South African National Energy Association (SANEA) have established EAP as a Section 21 Company which is located at the Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA) in Johannesburg.
Statham now has the task to lead this experienced global team's action on energy poverty. He has some 34 years of diverse experience in the power industry in South Africa, working for Eskom for most of his career. Statham has served on a number of governmental task forces and committees dealing with energy matters. He has also actively supported the World Energy Council's (WEC) programme on the Performance of Generating Plant and Chaired the WEC Global Study on "Energy Policy Scenarios to 2050". Statham currently serves on the WEC Studies Committee for the 2008 - 2010 work cycle. He has been elected by the Executive Assembly of the World Energy Council to serve as an Officer and Chairman of Studies from September 2010.
The primary focus for the EAP will be to:
- Identify strategic partners to support implementation of objectives;
- Obtain resources from the private sector to facilitate programme development;
- Build a pipeline of projects by leveraging existing national plans;
- Identify financing opportunities for the sustainable replication of the EAP concept.
"The shareholders are already making significant in-kind and financial contributions towards resourcing the company but there is a need to build a sustainable critical mass to support scaling up of the programme to address the considerable challenge of energy access," Statham continued.
"Lesotho and South Africa are among the first countries which will see the implementation of the EAP pilot programmes due to tremendous Government support, enabling policy and regulatory environment. Liberia, Namibia and Zambia were also identified as potential countries to be included in the EAP project pipeline."
The World Economic Forum will remain a key partner for EAP by providing a platform for convening governments, NGOs, and private sector stakeholders together with WEC and WBCSD. The Forum is also set to play a key role towards a cohesive and effective delivery of energy access, initially in the rural areas of Sub- Saharan Africa.
ISSUED ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRMAN OF SANEA
For further information, please contact:
Sarita Cronjé
Marketing Manager
Cell: +27 (0)83 325 6716
Fax: +27 (0)86 611 5942
saritac@mweb.co.za
