• There are grid extension projects that REA has been undertaking.
• Some projects started as early as 2015 into 2021.
• REA expects to spend about K70 million on grid extension projects.

Rural Electrification Authority (REA) says it intends to spend about K70 million on grid extension projects in 2022 out of the K362.2 million that government has allocated to the institution in next year’s national budget.

Speaking in an interview with Money MF News, Authority Corporate Affairs Manager Justin Mukosa said the institution has been working on grid extension projects in a phased arrangement, some of which commenced in 2015.

Mr. Mukosa stated that REA will have about 29 grid extension projects being undertaken across the country next year.

“We have grid extension projects that we have been undertaking and some of them are in a sort of a phased arrangement such that we might have projects that started as early as 2015 into 2021, but will have about 29 grid extension projects being undertaken around the country.”

“And we are expecting that we might spend about maybe 70 million on grid extension projects. We also intend to allocate some of the budget allocations on procurement of materials that we store in our warehouse. We have what we call a rural extension master plan that defines the projects that we should undertake in a given annual phase,” Mr. Mukosa said.

Mr. Mukosa further revealed that about K40 million of the budgetary allocation to the Institution will go towards procurement of materials required to implement projects.

“But we also know that there are dynamics to the programs and in that context we have developed what we are calling a Ruling plan, where if there’s a change in the way we should plan, we need to have a capacity to accommodate that change. For instance, if there is a new district that has come on board, we need to move in as soon as possible.”

“So there will be also procurement of materials, maybe somewhere around 40 million of it will go for procurement of materials such as conductors, poles, meters among others, materials that go into project implementation,” he added.

Government has proposed an allocation of K362.2 million towards Rural Electrification Programs in 2022.