[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2152 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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114th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2152
To establish a comprehensive United States Government policy to
encourage the efforts of countries in sub-Saharan Africa to develop an
appropriate mix of power solutions, including renewable energy, for
more broadly distributed electricity access in order to support poverty
reduction, promote development outcomes, and drive economic growth, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
October 7, 2015
Mr. Corker (for himself, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Rubio, and Mr. Coons)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a comprehensive United States Government policy to
encourage the efforts of countries in sub-Saharan Africa to develop an
appropriate mix of power solutions, including renewable energy, for
more broadly distributed electricity access in order to support poverty
reduction, promote development outcomes, and drive economic growth, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Electrify Africa Act of 2015''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to encourage the efforts of countries in
sub-Saharan Africa to improve access to affordable and reliable
electricity in Africa in order to unlock the potential for economic
growth, job creation, food security, improved health, education, and
environmental outcomes, and poverty reduction.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States to partner, consult, and
coordinate with the governments of sub-Saharan African countries,
international financial institutions, and African regional economic
communities, cooperatives, and the private sector, in a concerted
effort to--
(1) promote first-time access to power and power services
for at least 50,000,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa by 2020 in
both urban and rural areas;
(2) encourage the installation of at least 20,000
additional megawatts of electrical power in sub-Saharan Africa
by 2020 using a broad mix of energy options to help reduce
poverty, promote sustainable development, and drive economic
growth;
(3) promote reliable, affordable, and sustainable power in
urban areas (including small urban areas) to promote economic
growth and job creation;
(4) promote policies to facilitate public-private
partnerships to provide electrical service to rural and
underserved populations;
(5) encourage the necessary in-country reforms, including
facilitating public-private partnerships specifically to
support electricity access projects to make such expansion of
power access possible;
(6) promote reforms of power production, delivery, and
pricing, as well as regulatory reforms and transparency, to
support long-term, market-based power generation and
distribution;
(7) promote policies to displace kerosene lighting with
other technologies; and
(8) promote an all-of-the-above energy development strategy
for sub-Saharan Africa that includes the use of oil, natural
gas, coal, hydroelectric, wind, solar, and geothermal power,
and other sources of energy.
SEC. 4. DEVELOPMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE, MULTIYEAR STRATEGY.
(a) Strategy Required.--
(1) In general.--The President shall establish a
comprehensive, integrated, multiyear strategy to encourage the
efforts of countries in sub-Saharan Africa to implement
national power strategies and develop an appropriate mix of
power solutions to provide access to sufficient reliable,
affordable, and sustainable power in order to reduce poverty
and drive economic growth and job creation consistent with the
policy stated in section 3.
(2) Flexibility and responsiveness.--The President shall
ensure that the strategy required under paragraph (1) maintains
sufficient flexibility for and remains responsive to
technological innovation in the power sector.
(b) Report Required.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the President shall transmit to the Committee on
Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of
the House of Representatives a report that contains the strategy
required under subsection (a) and includes a discussion of the
following elements:
(1) The objectives of the strategy and the criteria for
determining the success of the strategy.
(2) A general description of efforts in sub-Saharan Africa
to--
(A) increase power production;
(B) strengthen electrical transmission and
distribution infrastructure;
(C) provide for regulatory reform and transparent
and accountable governance and oversight;
(D) improve the reliability of power;
(E) maintain the affordability of power;
(F) maximize the financial sustainability of the
power sector; and
(G) improve access to power.
(3) A description of plans to support efforts of countries
in sub-Saharan Africa to increase access to power in urban and
rural areas, including a description of plans designed to
address commercial, industrial, and residential needs.
(4) A description of plans to support efforts to reduce
waste and corruption and improve existing power generation
through the use of a broad power mix, including fossil fuel and
renewable energy, distributed generation models, energy
efficiency, and other technological innovations, as
appropriate.
(5) An analysis of existing mechanisms for ensuring, and
recommendations to promote--
(A) commercial cost recovery;
(B) commercialization of electric service through
distribution service providers, including cooperatives,
to consumers;
(C) improvements in revenue cycle management, power
pricing, and fees assessed for service contracts and
connections;
(D) reductions in technical losses and commercial
losses; and
(E) access to power, including recommendations on
the creation of new service provider models that
mobilize community participation in the provision of
power services.
(6) A description of the reforms being undertaken or
planned by countries in sub-Saharan Africa to ensure the long-
term economic viability of power projects and to increase
access to power, including--
(A) reforms designed to allow third parties to
connect power generation to the grid;
(B) policies to ensure there is a viable and
independent utility regulator;
(C) strategies to ensure utilities become or remain
creditworthy;
(D) regulations that permit the participation of
independent power producers and private-public
partnerships;
(E) policies that encourage private sector and
cooperative investment in power generation;
(F) policies that ensure compensation for power
provided to the electrical grid by on-site producers;
(G) policies to unbundle power services;
(H) regulations to eliminate conflicts of interest
in the utility sector;
(I) efforts to develop standardized power purchase
agreements and other contracts to streamline project
development; and
(J) efforts to negotiate and monitor compliance
with power purchase agreements and other contracts
entered into with the private sector.
(7) A description of plans to ensure meaningful local
consultation, as appropriate, in the planning, long-term
maintenance, and management of investments designed to increase
access to power in sub-Saharan Africa.
(8) A description of the mechanisms to be established for--
(A) selection of partner countries for focused
engagement on the power sector;
(B) monitoring and evaluating increased access to,
and reliability and affordability of, power in sub-
Saharan Africa;
(C) maximizing the financial sustainability of
power generation, transmission, and distribution in
sub-Saharan Africa;
(D) establishing metrics to demonstrate progress on
meeting goals relating to access to power, power
generation, and distribution in sub-Saharan Africa; and
(E) terminating unsuccessful programs.
(9) A description of how the President intends to promote
trade in electrical equipment with countries in sub-Saharan
Africa, including a description of how the government of each
country receiving assistance pursuant to the strategy--
(A) plans to lower or eliminate import tariffs or
other taxes for energy and other power production and
distribution technologies destined for sub-Saharan
Africa, including equipment used to provide energy
access, including solar lanterns, solar home systems,
and micro and mini grids; and
(B) plans to protect the intellectual property of
companies designing and manufacturing products that can
be used to provide energy access in sub-Saharan Africa.
(10) A description of how the President intends to
encourage the growth of distributed renewable energy markets in
sub-Saharan Africa, including off-grid lighting and power, that
includes--
(A) an analysis of the state of distributed
renewable energy in sub-Saharan Africa;
(B) a description of market barriers to the
deployment of distributed renewable energy technologies
both on- and off-grid in sub-Saharan Africa;
(C) an analysis of the efficacy of efforts by the
Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the United
States Agency for International Development to
facilitate the financing of the importation,
distribution, sale, leasing, or marketing of
distributed renewable energy technologies; and
(D) a description of how bolstering distributed
renewable energy can enhance the overall effort to
increase power access in sub-Saharan Africa.
(11) A description of plans to ensure that small and medium
enterprises based in sub-Saharan Africa can fairly compete for
energy development and energy access opportunities associated
with this Act.
(c) Interagency Working Group.--
(1) In general.--The President may, as appropriate,
establish an Interagency Working Group to coordinate the
activities of relevant United States Government departments and
agencies involved in carrying out the strategy required under
this section.
(2) Functions.--The Interagency Working Group may, among
other things--
(A) seek to coordinate the activities of the United
States Government departments and agencies involved in
implementing the strategy required under this section;
(B) ensure efficient and effective coordination
between participating departments and agencies; and
(C) facilitate information sharing, and coordinate
partnerships between the United States Government, the
private sector, and other development partners to
achieve the goals of the strategy.
SEC. 5. PRIORITIZATION OF EFFORTS AND ASSISTANCE FOR POWER PROJECTS IN
SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA BY KEY UNITED STATES INSTITUTIONS.
(a) In General.--In pursuing the policy goals described in section
3, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development, the Director of the Trade and Development Agency, the
Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and the Chief Executive
Officer and Board of Directors of the Millennium Challenge Corporation
should, as appropriate, prioritize and expedite institutional efforts
and assistance to facilitate the involvement of such institutions in
power projects and markets, both on- and off-grid, in sub-Saharan
Africa and partner with other investors and local institutions in sub-
Saharan Africa, including private sector actors, to specifically
increase access to reliable, affordable, and sustainable power in sub-
Saharan Africa, including through--
(1) maximizing the number of people with new access to
power and power services;
(2) improving and expanding the generation, transmission
and distribution of power;
(3) providing reliable power to people and businesses in
urban and rural communities;
(4) addressing the energy needs of people living in areas
where there is little or no access to a power grid and
developing plans to systematically increase coverage in rural
areas;
(5) reducing transmission and distribution losses and
improving end-use efficiency and demand-side management;
(6) reducing energy-related impediments to business
productivity and investment; and
(7) building the capacity of countries in sub-Saharan
Africa to monitor and appropriately and transparently regulate
the power sector and encourage private investment in power
production and distribution.
(b) Effectiveness Measurement.--In prioritizing and expediting
institutional efforts and assistance pursuant to this section, as
appropriate, such institutions shall use clear, accountable, and
metric-based targets to measure the effectiveness of such guarantees
and assistance in achieving the goals described in section 3.
(c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be construed
to authorize modifying or limiting the portfolio of the institutions
covered by subsection (a) in other developing regions.
SEC. 6. LEVERAGING INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT.
In implementing the strategy described in section 4, the President
should direct the United States representatives to appropriate
international bodies to use the influence of the United States,
consistent with the broad development goals of the United States, to
advocate that each such body--
(1) commit to significantly increase efforts to promote
investment in well-designed power sector and electrification
projects in sub-Saharan Africa that increase energy access, in
partnership with the private sector and consistent with the
host countries' absorptive capacity;
(2) address energy needs of individuals and communities
where access to an electricity grid is impractical or cost-
prohibitive;
(3) enhance coordination with the private sector in sub-
Saharan Africa to increase access to electricity;
(4) provide technical assistance to the regulatory
authorities of sub-Saharan African governments to remove
unnecessary barriers to investment in otherwise commercially
viable projects; and
(5) utilize clear, accountable, and metric-based targets to
measure the effectiveness of such projects.
SEC. 7. PROGRESS REPORT.
(a) In General.--Not later than three years after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the President shall transmit to the Committee on
Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Foreign Relations of the Senate a report on progress made toward
achieving the strategy described in section 4 that includes the
following:
(1) A report on United States programs supporting
implementation of policy and legislative changes leading to
increased power generation and access in sub-Saharan Africa,
including a description of the number, type, and status of
policy, regulatory, and legislative changes initiated or
implemented as a result of programs funded or supported by the
United States in countries in sub-Saharan Africa to support
increased power generation and access after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(2) A description of power projects receiving United States
Government support and how such projects, including off-grid
efforts, are intended to achieve the strategy described in
section 4.
(3) For each project described in paragraph (2)--
(A) a description of how the project fits into, or
encourages modifications of, the national energy plan
of the country in which the project will be carried
out, including encouraging regulatory reform in that
county;
(B) an estimate of the total cost of the project to
the consumer, the country in which the project will be
carried out, and other investors;
(C) the amount of financing provided or guaranteed
by the United States Government for the project;
(D) an estimate of United States Government
resources for the project, itemized by funding source,
including from the Overseas Private Investment
Corporation, the United States Agency for International
Development, the Department of the Treasury, and other
appropriate United States Government departments and
agencies;
(E) an estimate of the number of individuals,
communities, businesses, schools, and health facilities
that have gained power connections as a result of the
project, with a description of how the reliability,
affordability, and sustainability of power has been
improved as of the date of the report;
(F) an assessment of the increase in the number of
people and businesses with access to power, and in the
operating electrical power capacity in megawatts as a
result of the project between the date of the enactment
of this Act and the date of the report;
(G) a description of efforts to gain meaningful
local consultation for projects associated with this
Act and any significant estimated noneconomic effects
of the efforts carried out pursuant to this Act; and
(H) a description of the participation by small and
medium enterprises based in sub-Saharan Africa on
projects associated with this Act.
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