THE Prime Minister will host a historical meeting with Development Partners on Tonga's Energy Roadmap in Neiafu, Vava'u on 16-17 November 2009. The aim of the meeting is to finalise and sign-off on "Tonga's Energy Roadmap 2010-2020", which will enable Tonga to reach its policy target of fifty percent of its power generation to be fuelled by renewable sources within three years.
The Development Partners that will be represented at this important meeting include the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, the European Investment Bank, AusAID, NZAID, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the European Union, IRENA, the Embassy of Japan, and the Embassy of the People's Republic of China.
International and Regional agencies that will also be participating in the historical meeting include the Pacific Islands Applied Geosciences Commission (SOPAC) the International Union for the Conservation of Nature(IUCN), and possibly the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Power companies that will also be participating include Tonga Power Limited and New Zealand's Meridian Energy Limited.
The discussions with the Development Partners on Tonga's Energy Roadmap have been ongoing since April 2009, following the Pacific Energy Minister's meeting in Nuku'alofa, whereby all the Government's development partners agreed upon this new strategy for assisting and reforming a specific sector. The Hon Prime Minister has led this development with the assistance of the Cabinet Sub Committee on Renewable Energy and the Aid Management Division of the Ministry of Finance and National Planning.
An interim Draft Report on the Roadmap is expected to be tabled at the first sessions of the meeting and various discussions will be held in relation to the next steps for implementation including the allocations from Tonga's Development Partners to specific components of the Roadmap. The meeting is expected to conclude donor funding for implementation of the Road Map, which will be published in February, 2010.
The meeting will be held at the Puataukanave Hotel on the waterfront in Neiafu. Overseas delegates are expected to arrive in Tonga this weekend in time for transfers up to Vava'u before the meeting starts on Monday, 16 November. PMO, 10/11/09.
