ZESCO LIMITED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT

Transcription

1 ZESCO LIMITED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE ELECTRICITY SYSTEM Degree of electrification; percentage of population with direct access to grid electricity, to isolated electric systems and with no access at all. The degree of electrification in Zambia is very low. a. Percentage of population with direct access to grid electricity is 22% b. Percentage of population with direct access to isolated electric systems is 0.028% c. Percentage of population with NO access to electricity at all is % 2. Degree of unbundling; description of the country electric utilities (vertically integrated or not), area(s) of business in which they are active (generation, transmission, distribution and final supply). Number of customers, percentage of traded electricity over the total national. The Zambian electricity power system is operated as part of an interconnected power system linking South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Zambia Electricity Supply Industry was predominantly a market run by a single state owned company, the Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation prior to the liberalization of the sector through an Act of Parliament in 1995 so as to attract private sector companies to participate in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in the country. In order to promote this policy the Government set up two new institutions; Energy Regulation Board (ERB) and the Office for the Promotion of Private Power Investors (OPPPI) to regulate operations and pricing, and promote new players to the electricity market respectively. Currently there are three major players in the ESI including ZESCO Limited, a vertically integrated company which generates, transmits, distributes and supplies electricity throughout Zambia, Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC) based in Kitwe which is a net transmitter of electricity purchased from ZESCO at high voltage and distributed to the mining industry based on the Copperbelt, Lunsemfwa Hydro Power Company based in Kabwe which is an independent power producer generating 48 MW of power that it sells to ZESCO Limited under a Power Purchase Agreement. There is also the Rural Electrification Authority (REA) which deals with the cause for increasing access to electricity in the rural areas and the Energy Regulation Board which is the regulator of the energy sector in Zambia. Other participants in the industry include small-scale generators and solar based energy services companies supplying power to some rural areas. ZESCO Limited, previously known as Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation, is a Parastatal company under the Companies Act. It was established in 1970 after an Act of Parliament was

2 passed in 1969, and its governance has evolved over time to one that defines an arms-length relationship with Government. This relationship was previously defined in the Performance Contract that was signed between Government and ZESCO in The contract defined the commercialization issues and other operational benchmarks for ZESCO over the contract period of three (3) years. Currently a new covenant between ZESCO and government is being developed to define the management of the organization following an amendment of the articles of association. The company is governed by a Board of Directors which is appointed by Government with wide consultations and participation of the private sector. To support the Board in the running of ZESCO is the Management Executive Board headed by the Managing Director and assisted by Directors. It has its head office in Lusaka, Zambia and offices spread in every district of the country. The company is a private company limited by shares, incorporated and domiciled in the Republic of Zambia. It is wholly owned by the Government of the Republic of Zambia (GRZ. The principal activity of the company is to generate, transmit, distribute and supply electricity to local and international markets. It has an installed hydro-based generation capacity of MW and its main generation stations are Kafue Gorge Power Station with 990MW capacity; Kariba North Bank Power Station with 660MW capacity (to increase to 720MW by June 2010) and Victoria Falls Power Station with 108MW capacity. In addition it has mini-hydro power plants with total capacity of 24MW and nine diesel power plants with a capacity of 6.3MW, which serve isolated mini grids in rural areas. The power is transported to the customer through ZESCO s extensive transmission and distribution systems measuring approximately km. The company has widespread telecommunications networks, which have recently been leased to Zamtel to operate and continue to open to the other users like mobile telephone operators through the installation of optic fiber on its transmission lines. 3. Power plants: type, capacity, generation for the past ten year; ownership (public or private). ZESCO s existing power plants are mainly hydro and Diesel generation and are wholly owned by the state-owned Parastatal company. The company generation data for the past 10 years has been as per data below. Table 1: ZESCO GENERATION STATIONS AS AT 31 MARCH 2009 STATION MACHINE TYPE INSTALLED CAPACITY (kw) AVAILABLE CAPACITY (kw) KARIBA NORTH HYDRO 690, ,000 KAFUE GORGE HYDRO 990, ,000 VICTORIA FALLS HYDRO 108, ,000 LUSIWASI HYDRO 12,000 9,000 MUSONDA FALLS HYDRO 5,000 5,000 CHISHIMBA FALLS HYDRO 6,000 5,000 LUNZUA RIVER HYDRO MWINILUNGA DIESEL 1,360 1,360 KABOMPO DIESEL 1,160 1,160 ZAMBEZI DIESEL MUFUMBWE DIESEL LUANGWA DIESEL 1, LUKULU DIESEL KAPUTA DIESEL

3 CHAVUMA DIESEL GRAND TOTAL 1,818,772 1,814,032 Table 2: INTERCONNECTED SYSTEM UNITS GENERATED AND PEAK GENERATION YEAR KARIBA NORTH KAFUE GORGE VICTORIA FALLS MULUNGUSHI TOTAL 2008/09 4,151,856 4,848, , ,224 10,045, /08 3,271,966 5,310, , ,343 9,600, /07 3,940,959 4,936, , ,078 9,787, /06 3,652,791 4,530, , ,205 8,855, /05 3,637,729 4,066, , ,216 8,191, /04 3,151,241 4,666, , ,572 8,383, /03 2,784,769 4,795, , ,885 8,230, /02 2,879,517 5,555, ,736 81,422 9,116, /01 2,389,588 5,126, , ,151, /20 2,270,319 4,840, , ,731, /99 2,170,207 4,752, , ,589, /98 1,635,310 5,473, , ,800,072 Table 3: ISOLATED SYSTEMS - MINI HYDRO AND DIESEL GENERATION YEAR MINI HYDRO DIESEL TOTAL 2008/09 88,992 11, , /08 59,708 11,712 71, /07 62,930 12,944 75, /06 38,908 12,456 51, /05 48,267 14,877 63, /04 49,986 14,930 64, /03 41,827 17,034 58, /02 34,333 16,630 50, /01 26,529 16,520 43, /20 35,538 16,304 51, /99 38,876 14,480 53, /98 35,232 17,226 52, Description of the transmission system(s): Scheme, ownership, voltage level, number and length of lines, transmission capacity of each line, capacity of crossborder connections, level of international transactions The main Transmission System is part of the vertically integrated company ZESCO that generates, transmits and distributes electricity. The Zambian system has two independent Transmission companies that operate part of the Transmission System and these are Copperbelt Energy Corporation PLC (66kV and 220kV) and Lunsemfwa Hydro Power Company Ltd (66kV). The Zambian Transmission System is connected radially to Tanzania and Botswana on 66kV, Namibia on 220kV and is interconnected to Congo DR on 220kV and Zimbabwe on 330kV. The Transmission System operating voltages are 66kV, 88kV, 132kV, 220kV and 330kV.

4 Table 4: TRANSMISSION SYSTEM LINE LENGTHS Copperbelt Energy ZESCO Corp. Lunsemfwa Hydro Power Co. km No. MVA km No. MVA km No. MVA 66kV kV kV kV kV Note*: the MVA is for each line. Table 5: CROSS BORDER LINE CAPACITIES CONGO DR ZIMBABWE Botswana, Tanzania & Namibia km No. MVA km No. MVA km No. MVA 66kV kV kV Note *: 66kV line to Kasane in Botswana is 3km up to the border. 66kV line to Sumbawanga in Tanzania is 21km to the border. 220kV line to Zambezi in Namibia 8km up to the border. Table 6: LEVEL OF INTERNATIONAL TRANSACTIONS CONGO DR ZIMBABWE Botswana, Tanzania & Namibia* km No. MVA km No. MVA km No. MVA 66kV kV kV Note * 66kV line to Kasane in Botswana is 3km up to the border. 66kV line to Sumbawanga in Tanzania is 21km to the border. 220kV line to Zambezi in Namibia 8km up to the border. Table 7: ZESCO ENERGY EXPORTS Z E S A E S K O M Total ZESA-ZESCO flow YEAR MWh MW MWh MW MWh MWh 2008/09 14, , ,510 (192,053) 2007/08 119, , , , /07 221, , ,956 1,223, /06 113, , ,710 1,333, /05 2, , ,856 1,138, /04 1, , ,530 1,235, / , ,885 1,432, /02 1, ,589, ,591,375 2,631, /01 174, , ,945 2,042,121

5 1999/20 94, , , /99 257, , , /98 694, ,650 Table 8: WHEELING OF SNEL ENERGY EXPORTS TO ZESA AND ESKOM Z E S A E S K O M YEAR MWh MW MWh MW 2007/08 125, /08 291, , /07 287, , /06 462, , /05 491, , /04 382, , /03 424, , /02 426, , /01 516, , /20 252, , /99 14, , Table 9: LOW VOLTAGE 33KV OR 11KV ENERGY EXPORTS TO NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES ZIMBABWE (ZESA) CONGO DR (SNEL) TOTAL YEAR kwh kva kwh kva kwh 2008/09 2,463, ,304,263 1,794 10,767, /08 2,913,230 8,691,330 11,604, /07 3,117,090 6,771,692 9,888, /06 2,439,307 5,463,967 7,903, /05 2,313,125 4,390,383 6,703, /04 2,342,454 3,807,873 6,150, /03 2,728,498 5,736,142 8,464,640 Table 10: LOW VOLTAGE 66KV ENERGY EXPORTS TO NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES BOTSWANA (BPC) NAMIBIA(NAMPOWER) TANZANIA(TANESCO) TOTAL YEAR kwh kva kwh kva kwh kva kwh 2008/09 26,047,848 4,924 28,658,000 5,621 9,839,800 2,745 64,545, /08 24,748,378 26,404,142 14,316,064 65,468, /07 19,847,481 23,766,030 22,267,189 65,880, /06 13,367,680 22,992,000 18,201,195 54,560, /05 11,900,160 22,302,000 20,530,335 54,732, /04 10,906,508 21,570,000 17,756,518 50,233, /03 14,716,700 21,960,000 11,333,049 48,009, Management of the transmission system - Type of transmission system operator (TSO); applicable legislation, ownership, degree of independence, supervisory body, mechanism of creation, etc.

6 ZESCO is currently one of the two Transmission System Operators in Zambia and is governed by the Laws of Zambia with the main governing legislation being the Electricity Act, Factories Act, and the Energy Regulation Act. The ZESCO Transmission system is wholly owned by ZESCO Limited and supervised by ZESCO Limited through the Director of Generation and Transmission and the Energy Regulation Board. ZESCO was created in 1970 following the enactment of the Zambia Electricity Supply Act of The Regulator gives the companies licenses to Transmission companies for them to operate their systems. There is no System Operator. The transmission grid is operated and monitored by the control centres of the various owners of the systems. Each of the companies has its own operator. The ZESCO grid is operated by its own National Control Centre while the CEC grid is operated by its Control Centre. Since these control centres are owned by the various companies the degree of independence is compromised as they have to serve their grids. The control centres are answerable to their companies. There is no supervisory body but they have to operate according to the Electricity Act regulations and also being members of the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) operate within the SAPP operating guidelines. 6. Grid Code. Description, defined operating procedures and technical standards related to transmission safety, reliability of supply and requirements for use and access to the grid (transparency, non-discrimination). The grid code is a set of rules and regulations for the safe and efficient operation of the grid. The document was approved by the Energy Regulation Board in 2007 and is in the stage of implementation. The governance issues are yet to be agreed so that the code can be operationalised. The Secretariat is yet to be established. The System Operator is supposed to be the Secretariat. The grid Code Technical Committee was set up in 2008 to assist with coming up of the System Operator, confirm and test the Transmission tariff formula. Following the formation of the GCTC three groups were formed to look at specific assignments as follows: Confirm and test the Transmission tariff formula System Operator selection Develop and maintain a comprehensive list of participants 7. Extensions of the transmission grid; responsibilities, supervisory body, procedures for authorization, time schedules. There are two companies with transmission licenses, i.e. ZESCO Limited and Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC). ZESCO owns the bulk of the transmission system including all the 330 kv backbone network country wide. ZESCO also owns all the 88 kv and 132 kv networks. CEC s transmission network is based on 220 kv and 66 kv all located in the Copperbelt region. ZESCO also owns some extensive 66 kv network in the northern and eastern part of the country. The expansion of the system is the responsibility of the grid owner for funding, implementation and commissioning. Developments of the transmission system are therefore handled between the two utilities, independently. As part of the authorization process the utility wishing to

7 develop the network has to apply to the Energy Regulation Board (ERB), the national regulator and obtain a no objection. The application to the regulator contains salient features of the intended project including the power system study results, economic/financial analysis, status of permits for rights of way and the environmental impact assessment. The utility developing the network also has to comply with the legal requirements of the Environmental Council of Zambia (ECZ) in accordance with the Environmental Protection and Pollution Control Act of 1990 and in particular Statutory Instrument No. 28, the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations of The decision of ECZ on whether the project meets their requirements is granted through a decision letter. The electricity Act (CAP 433 of the Laws of Zambia) authorizes the utility to traverse state land or private land for the purpose of development of the transmission system. Consent has to be obtained from the landowner. During the construction phase, the statutory bodies i.e. ECZ and ERB may visit the site to check compliance with the relevant rules and guidelines. Developments of the transmission system under ZESCO s jurisdiction are necessitated broadly by new bulk customer connections or reinforcements of the network due to growth of system load or to increase reliability of a part of the network. Developments due to new bulk customers are carried out through connection agreements which spell out among other things, time schedules. The transmission Grid Extension or the construction of new transmission systems is normally motivated by the following situations; (a) When the existing system is no longer able to transmit the required power effectively and efficiently from the generating Stations to the Load Centre. This is normally observed from the system operations and also from the load growth projections in the various available load forecasts. (b) When there is need to supply a new load or when an existing customer increases the required demand. ZESCO limited through the transmission development department is responsible for the transmission developments projects. Once the need to carry out a transmission Grid extension or Reinforcement is identified, the following processes are carried out. i) Feasibility studies These studies are carried out to determine the most favorable solution. The studies will include system analysis studies, i.e. Load flows, short circuit analysis, stability studies, economic and financial analysis etc. The Environmental and Social Unit of ZESCO will also carry out the Environmental Impact Assessment study. This report has to be approved by the Environmental Council of Zambia which is the regulating body in environmental issues in Zambia. ii) Authorizations

8 Once the studies are completed, a feasibility study report is prepared and the project proposal is then forwarded to the ZESCO Board of Directors for approval. iii) Implementations The resources are mobilized to enable the implementation process after the project has been approved by the Board of Directors. The project is then advertised and the best bidder is selected through international Competitive bidding process. ZESCO normally supervises the selected contractor throughout the construction period, but in some special cases, a consultant is engaged to carry out the supervisory functions. 8. Description of the distribution system(s): number of companies, size, ownership voltage levels, losses (technical-nontechnical) The ZESCO Distribution system, which is divided into 4 divisions (North, South, Copperbelt and Lusaka) and 16 Regions (4 in each Division), is wholly owned by ZESCO Limited and has a presence in all the nine provinces of Zambia. The voltages handled by the distribution system range from 0.4kV to 66kV. The Distribution Losses from January to December 2009 were as per table 11 below: Table 11: SYSTEM LOSSES 2009 PERIOD TRANSMISSION LOSSES (%) DISTRIBUTION LOSSES (%) January February March April May June July August September October November December Management of the distribution system(s); legislation applicable ZESCO Distribution system is governed by the Laws of Zambia with the main governing legislation being the Electricity Act, Factories Act, and the Energy Regulation Act. 10. Extensions of the distribution grids; responsibilities, supervisory body, procedures for authorization, time schedules. The ZESCO Distribution system is wholly owned by ZESCO Limited and supervised by ZESCO Limited through the Director of Distribution and Supply and the ERB. 11. Final supply: unbundled or not from other areas of business, types and number of customers, number of companies, size, ownership, types of meters used, losses, non-metered energy, applicable legislation.

9 ZESCO s final supply of electricity is done at Distribution and Supply which are vertically integrated with the Generation and Transmission systems. Customers are categorized into two categories namely, by tariff category and by sector. Table 12: CUSTOMER BY TARIFF CATEGORY AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2009 CATEGORY NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS RESIDENTIAL- CREDIT METERS 226,281 RESIDENTIAL- PREPAID METERS 106,629 MINING- BULK SUPPLY 9 INDUSTRIAL 5,553 COMMERCIAL 32,003 AGRICULTURE 230 SOCIAL SERVICES 4,898 TOTAL 375,603 Table 13: TYPES OF METERS USED TARIFF CATEGORY TYPE OF METERS USED CUSTOMER BASE Residential- credit meters Single phase credit meters, three phase whole current credit meters 226,281 Residential- prepaid meters Single phase sts prepay meters, single phase smart card prepay meters 106,629 Mining- bulk supply Three phase electronic ct operated credit meters 9 Industrial Three phase electronic ct operated credit meters, three phase electronic whole current credit meters 5,553 Commercial Three phase electronic whole current credit meters, single phase credit meters 32,003 Agriculture Three phase electronic whole current credit meters, single phase credit meters Social services Three phase electronic whole current credit meters, single phase credit meters 4,898 TOTAL 375,373 Table 14: CUSTOMER BY SECTOR AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2009 SECTORS NO. OF CUSTOMERS Others 4,656 Agriculture 230 Mining 74 Manufacturing 5,406 Energy and Water 242 Construction 82 Trade 23,18 Transport 400 Finance and Property 7,685 Services 332,910 TOTALS 375, Stability; fluctuations in frequency, voltage level.

10 Stability is the ability of the electric power system to return to stable condition after a disturbance. The speed of Protection operation to clear a fault is cardinal in helping to return the system to a stable condition following a system fault or disturbance. Fast protection operation to clear faults and single phase auto reclosing before the system loses stability returns the system back to normal or stable. The nominal system frequency is 50Hz and is normally controlled within the limits of ±1.25Hz unless exceptional circumstances prevail. The system frequency could rise or fall in exceptional circumstances. Over frequency or under frequency protection is employed to protect the system from collapsing by tripping the generators or taking out load to stabilize the system. The system voltages shall be controlled during normal operation to within statutory limits of ±10% or ±6% at the points of supply. Overvoltage or under voltage protection is employed to protect the system from collapsing by tripping the lines or taking out load to stabilize the system. Reactors and capacitors are also operated to control the voltages on the system. Power transformers have tap changers to adjust voltages as well. A. Ancillary services These are services supplied to the Transmission System by generators, distributors or end-use customers necessary for the reliable and secure transportation of power from generators to distributors and customers in order to maintain the short-term reliability of the interconnected power system (IPS). Ancillary services shall include the following: i. Operating reserves; ii. iii. iv. Black start; Reactive power supply; Regulation and load following. Reliable operation of the power system does not require only the flow of real power from the generating stations. Others services like voltage control, spinning reserves have no means for compensation in the current SAPP arrangement. B. Reliability of Supply The Zambian power system has had three major blackouts in 2006, 2008 and 2009 in past ten years. The first two were caused by faults on the 330kV SAPP interconnected transmission lines, while the other was caused by a power transformer failure as a result of protection maloperation. Of late power transformer failures leading to blackouts have become frequent on the sub-transmission system. The June 2006 power blackout was caused by a 330kV busbar fault in a neighbouring utility resulting in a disturbance that led to our main protection relays maloperate and trip the 330kV system. The January 2008 power blackout was caused by system instability when a 330kV tower collapse as a result of flash floods in January The June 2009 power blackout was

11 caused by a 125MVA 330/132kV power transformer failure as a result of protection maloperation. Table 15: BLACKOUTS DURATION 19 January 21 January 22 January June :58-16:43hrs :38-03:31hrs 19:27-22:19hrs 17:50-18:32hrs :18-23:22hrs Table 16: AMOUNT OF NON-SUPPLIED ENERGY, MWH 19 January 21 January 22 January June Total -MWh , , , , , , , * , , *Note: Non-supplied energy, MWh, following the loss of power transformer at Leopards Hill on 15 June 2009 for six and half months up to 31 December 2009 we have been load shedding about 80MW for four hours during peak times every day. 13. Tariff system. Methodology for definition of tariffs. Principles and methods for tariff setting, transparency. Type(s) of tariffs (monomial, binomial). Voltage levels. End-users tariffs, access tariffs for transmission and distribution. Updating mechanisms, responsible body. Fiscal treatment. The tariff system is based on Revenue Requirement which is Cost plus an allowable Rate of Return and is applied for once per year and effective on 1 April each year. Other factors considered by the regulator include compliance to the Key Performance Indicators. The type of tariffs used is the Inverted block for credit metered customers and flat tariff for prepayment customers. a. ZESCO GENERAL TARIFFS Notice is hereby given that the Energy Regulation Board has approved revised electricity tariffs from 1 st August This notice is being given in accordance with the requirements of section 8 subsection 2 of the Electricity Act CAP 433 of the Laws of Zambia. The fixed, energy, and demand charges will be as given below. Electricity bills based on the new charges should therefore, be received by our customers in August 2009.

12 Table 17: ZESCO GENERAL TARIFFS 2009: ZESCO LIMITED REVISION OF ELECTRICITY TARIFFS CUSTOMER CATEGORY 2008 Tariffs (ZMK) 20 th July 2009 Approved Tariffs (ZMK) I. METERED RESIDENTIAL TARIFFS (Capacity 15kVA) R1 - Consumption up to 100KWh Energy charge/kwh) R2 - Consumption between 101 to 400 KWh Energy charge/kwh) R3 - Consumption above 400 KWh Energy charge/kwh) PRE-PAID TARIFF Energy charge/kwh Fixed Monthly Charge 7, , II. COMMERCIAL TARIFFS (Capacity 15kVA) C1-Consumption up to 700kWh Energy charge/kwh) Fixed Monthly Charge 29, , III. SOCIAL SERVICES TARIFFS Schools, Hospital,Orphanages, churches, Energy charge K/KWh water pumping & street lighting Fixed Monthly Charge 24, , IV. MAXIMUM DEMAND TARIFFS MD charge/kva/month 8, , MD1- Capacity between 16 to 300 kva Energy charge /KWh Fixed Monthly Charge 79, , MD charge/kva/month 15, , MD2 - Capacity between 301 to 2000 Kva Energy charge /KWh Fixed Monthly Charge 158, , MD charge/kva/month 24, , MD3 - Capacity between 2001 to 7500kVA Energy charge /KWh Fixed Monthly Charge 346, , MD charge/kva/month 25, , MD4 - Capacity above 7500kVA Energy charge /KWh Fixed Monthly Charge 693, , NOTE: ZMK Zambian Kwacha The above tariffs are: Exclusive of 3% Government excise duty Exclusive of 16% Value Added Tax (VAT) 14. Cross-subsidization. Country policies related to cross-subsidization, de facto cross-subsidization, subsidization of certain types of consumers from external sources (public budget). The policy is that there will be no cross-subsidization of between consumers regardless of tariff category. Therefore all customers are expected to pay according to the strain that they place on the Zesco system. If the customer is serviced at transmission level, he is expected to pay for the use of the generation and transmission system and if a customer is serviced at distribution level, he is expected to pay for the use of the generation, transmission and Distribution system.

13 15. Electricity market structure. Description, procedures, responsible bodies, market participants, bilateral contracts (quantities, energy traded, types of contracts). Present situation and final objectives. Eligible vs. non-eligible customers (definitions, time schedule, recent evaluation (transition from noneligible to eligible), existence of a market operator, balancing market rules. The Zambian electricity power system is operated as part of an interconnected power system linking South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Zambia Electricity Supply Industry was predominantly a market run by a single state owned company, the Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation prior to the liberalization of the sector through an Act of Parliament in 1995 so as to attract private sector companies to participate in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in the country. In order to promote this policy the Government set up two new institutions; Energy Regulation Board (ERB) and the Office for the Promotion of Private Power Investors (OPPPI) to regulate operations and pricing, and promote new players to the electricity market respectively. Currently there are three major players in the ESI including ZESCO Limited, a vertically integrated company which generates, transmits, distributes and supplies electricity throughout Zambia, Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC) based in Kitwe which is a net transmitter of electricity purchased from ZESCO at high voltage and distributed to the mining industry based on the Copperbelt, Lunsemfwa Hydro Power Company based in Kabwe which is an independent power producer generating 48 MW of power that it sells to ZESCO Limited under a Power Purchase Agreement. There is also the Rural Electrification Authority (REA) which deals with the cause for increasing access to electricity in the rural areas and the Energy Regulation Board which is the regulator of the energy sector in Zambia. Other participants in the industry include small-scale generators and solar based energy services companies supplying power to some rural areas.