Section 147 Electricity Act 2023
Section 147 of the Electricity Act 2023 is about Criteria for allocation of the REF. It is under Part XVI (Rural Electrification Agency) of the Act.
(1) The Agency shall, in consultation with the Minister —
(a) establish objective and transparent criteria for the geographical allocation of resources from the REF and such criteria shall be determined taking into. account —
(i) the need for financial support from the REF,
(ii) progress in increasing rural electrification achieved through previous disbursements from the REF, and
(iii) the existence of local matching funding; and
(b) develop an open, competitive and transparent procedure for making disbursements from the REF to individual projects, including the establishment of eligibility and selection criteria.
(2) The eligibility criteria for the purposes of subsection (1) (b) shall be determined considering -——
(a) the extent to which the proposed activity can demonstrate technical, economic and financial viability for a sustained period;
(b) the extent to which the proposed activity demonstrates support for rural development taking into account the priorities of the local communities: and
(c) the level of community and investor commitment to the proposed activity.
(3) The selection criteria for the purposes of subsection (1) (b), and the quantum of disbursement, shall be determined taking into account —
(a) the resources available from the REF;
(b) the cost of each new connection created under the project; and
(c) other objective criteria that the Agency may determine, such as tariff levels and quality of service.