Tunisia issues renewable energy law to encourage public-private partnerships

Tunisia’s Parliament has approved a new renewable energy law that allows private investors to install renewable energy power plants in the country, according to local news portal Directinfo. Under the new law, the local energy ministry will be responsible for issuing project authorizations.

To date, only the country’s state-owned utility Société tunisienne de l'électricité et du gaz (STEG) has been allowed to install renewable energy systems. The government stressed that the new law will not lead to the privatization of the country’s electric system and that its aim is to encourage private-public partnerships.

According to the article, developers will be allowed to install renewable energy systems for self-consumption, for local consumption or for export. The article does not disclose if renewable energy projects will be supported through a special tariff or any other incentive scheme. Tunisia has had limited success with solar development to date. The government's solar strategy, Plan Solaire Tunisien, targets 1 GW of installed wind and solar capacity by 2016 and 4.7 GW by 2030.