Licensing in the Electricity Sector

Electricity

One of the main tasks of ERA is to issue licenses and to monitor that licensees fulfill the requirements and conditions included in the licensees.

The Electricity Regulatory Authority grants licenses in the electricity Sector, under the authority granted to it by the laws of the Republic of Uganda.

A person who intends to establish a project for which a license is required under the Electricity Act 1999 is supposed to notify the Authority of the intended project by submitting a Notice of Intended Application Forms to the Authority.

The Authority will then open the project for competition by inviting applications for a license, which is made on an Application for License Forms and submitted to the Authority, with appropriate fees.

There are several steps, which the application has to go through before the License is granted.

Wiremen

Section 89 of the Electricity Act 1999, provides for the issuance of Installation Permits to those persons involved in electrical installations. Under the old Act, this function used to be handled by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development. The issuance of Installation Permits is administered by a special committee empowered by the Electricity Regulatory Authority as provided for under section 14 of the Act. The Committee makes rules and procedures in line with the guidelines subject to approval by the Authority. The Installation Permit requirements are as set by the then, Wireman’s Licensing Board, and have remained the same in the areas of technical qualification and classes of Installation Permits. The Committee is composed of representatives from the following organization;

• Electricity Regulatory Authority – Chairman
• Electricity Regulatory Authority – Secretary
• Uganda Electricity Distribution Company Limited
• Engineers Registration Board Consumer Representative – UCPA
• Vocational Training Institute