The National Assembly was notified on Wednesday by Hon. Nani Juwara, Minister of Petroleum and Energy, that the Gambian government owes Senegal’s energy provider, SENELEC, more than 10 billion CFA for unpaid bills that date back three months.

The Minister made this revelation in response to a question from Hon. Omar Jammeh, the Janjanbureh constituency representative, during a National Assembly session. Jammeh had inquired about the details of the energy deal between NAWEC and SENELEC. Hon. Jammeh requested information about the contract’s conditions, the overall sum at stake, the payments made, and any unpaid sums.

In response, the Minister clarified that NAWEC and SENELEC’s contract is set up as a “take and pay” arrangement, which means that there is a 30-day credit term and payment is only due for energy used.

“We owe three months’ invoices; May, June, and July 2024 amounting to over 10 billion CFA due to NAWEC’s current cash flow situation,” he disclosed. “The bulk of the monthly purchase is the 50MW facility at high voltage. The amount paid, and outstanding balance depends on the energy receive.”

In a follow-up inquiry, Hon. Jammeh voiced doubts about the “take and pay” strategy’s durability and sought support for NAWEC to guarantee its long-term survival.

Minister Juwara emphasized the objective of regional collaboration in energy infrastructure in his statement, as well as the Gambia’s membership in the OMVG (Organization for the Development of the Gambia River). Additionally, he stated that in the future, the Gambia might export electricity to its neighbors.

He cited existing preparations for a 150 MW solar project in the Gambia to meet local energy demands and maybe export excess electricity to neighboring nations in order to bolster this ambition.

“We belong to a regional organization, and if you look at the other members of the OMVG, one of their goals is to build infrastructure that other countries can use. This is also a component of the deal that we are entering into with Senelec and the other West African nations.

However, the truth is that we want to wean ourselves off of our expensive fossil fuels. In addition, we will keep pursuing our regional commitments to guarantee lower costs for our citizens. We need sustainable energy projects in the nation to make it sustainable; the truth is that we cannot continue to rely solely on fossil fuels.

The Jeshwang constituency’s lawmaker, Hon. Sheriff Sarr, questioned whether the government had backup preparations in case Senegal cut off electrical supply because of the outstanding debt.

Minister Juwara responded by acknowledging that there is now insufficient local capability to meet the country’s energy needs. He underlined that this is the reason the Gambia is dependent on SENELEC and that current initiatives are meant to meet the nation’s energy requirements in the future.

He informed the members, “So in terms of having an immediate fix, as I said earlier, there isn’t one right now, but we are working on projects that will help us to be able to address our energy needs going forward.”