D ENERGY INDICATORS Energy is a broad input into human settlements and activities. It is strongly linked to a nation s GDP. Energy indicators provide a measure of efficiency and sustainability in production and every-day life, and environmental programmes, in terms of energy, should be targeting more efficient and sustainable ways of producing and living. Indicators of energy use are usually expressed as intensive quantities of total energy use, production or consumption, normalised to facilitate comparison. The key indicators described in the following pages consider total energy consumption by energy carrier (fuel mix), energy intensity (per capita and per unit of GDP), energy consumption by end-use in the major sectors (transport, mining, industry, local authorities, water pumping, government and parastatals), as well as cost of energy. The major energy carriers in Namibia are liquid petroleum fuels, electricity, coal and biomass. Renewable energy technologies are increasingly being used and can be expected to rise in importance in the medium term future. Energy carrier information and data is readily available for commercial energy sources (liquid petroleum fuels, electricity and coal) but is very sketchy for traditional fuels (mainly biomass). Disaggregation of energy use into component sectors (each sector being defined by a particular activity, output or end-use) is at present only possible for some energy carriers, and not for the aggregate energy consumption, because information is not being collected and compiled in a compatible format for the various energy carriers. Also, disaggregation by region or between urban and rural areas is at present not possible as information is not being compiled on a regional and urban/rural basis. It is strongly recommended that a strategy is implemented to ensure energy data collection and compilation in formats suitable for environmental monitoring. Of particular importance is the measurement and monitoring of traditional fuel consumption because it is believed that substantial environmental impacts can be expected in this sphere. In addition to presenting changes in energy consumption over time, the chosen key indicators will then show, inter alia, changes in sectoral, regional and urban/rural composition. Such information is crucial in determining the implementation of energy policies and subsequently evaluating the impact of such policies on energy consumption and related effects. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E1 of 22
INDICATOR D1: INDICATOR NAME DEFINITION MEASUREMENT NATIONAL COMMERCIAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION National Commercial Energy Consumption Aggregate commercial energy consumption and trend expressed by energy carrier Measured in Tonnes of Oil Equivalent (TOE), per capita, per unit GDP (at market prices), as % change from the previous year, and as contribution of energy carriers to total consumption SIGNIFICANCE OF THE INDICATOR PURPOSE: This indicator provides an indication of the level and trend of the total annual amount of commercial energy consumed in the country. It should be endeavoured to include non-commercial energy sources to complete the country s total energy balance, and to break energy consumption down by sector, by region and for urban and rural areas, to be able to identify strategies for energy policy implementation. RELEVANCE: This indicator provides a broad overview of the energy use situation in Namibia, and makes it possible to compare with other countries. It is a measure of Namibia s energy intensity (consumption per capita and consumption per unit GDP), and can provide warning signals on inefficient and unsustainable utilisation of resources and environmental impact. UNDERLYING VARIABLES AND DEFINITIONS: The indicator measures the contribution of each commercial energy carrier towards the total national consumption. This indicator is disaggregated by energy carrier (liquid petroleum fuels, electricity, and coal) LINKAGES TO OTHER INDICATORS: The indicator is linked to the more specific electricity (D2), petroleum fuels (D3) and biomass fuels consumption D4) indicators. MEASUREMENT OF THE INDICATOR: Data for this indicator is obtained from the Ministry of Mines and Energy, NamPower, and the oil and gas industry. Complementary information (eg GDP and population figures) is available from the Central Bureau of Statistics in the National Planning Commission. LIMITATIONS OF THE INDICATOR: Currently not possible to dissagregate all data by sector, by region, and between urban and rural. To obtain a complete picture of Namibia s energy consumption it would be necessary to include non-commercial fuels (biomass and renewable energy). Information on biomass and renewable energy consumption is very sketchy, and household energy consumption patterns are not well researched. The implementation of effective strategies to promote specific policy goals may therefore be difficult. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E2 of 22
Recommendation: Data collection to facilitate disaggregation D1.1 PAST PERFOMANCE D1.1.1 Commercial Energy Consumption Trend by Energy Carrier Total commercial energy consumption has been increasing since 1990 at an average rate of 5.4% per annum, mainly contributed to by the rising liquid fuels consumption. Electricity consumption has barely increased. Coal consumption had a peak in 1993 but this leveled off again to its pre-1993 level by 1996. The overall trend is ascribed to increasing transport fuel consumption. NAMIBIA'S TOTAL COMMERCIAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION TONS OF OIL EQUIVALENT 900,000 800,000 700,000 600,000 500,000 400,000 300,000 200,000 100,000-1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 LIQUID FUELS ELECTRICITY COAL TOTAL Figure D1.1 Energy consumption trends by energy carrier (commercial energy only) The contribution of the individual energy carriers to the total consumption is shown in Figure D1.2. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E3 of 22
CONTRIBUTION TO TOTAL COMMERCIAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION (TOE) 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 7% 7% 7% 15% 12% 10% 6% 7% 7% 20% 25% 26% 24% 19% 21% 18% 21% 20% 69% 68% 70% 66% 70% 74% 74% 69% 73% 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 LIQUID FUELS ELECTRICITY COAL Figure D1.2 Contribution of energy carriers to total commercial consumption Per capita The per capita commercial energy consumption trend has been leveling off until 1997 and shows a decreasing trend since then. This is due to the population growth rate being higher than the commercial energy consumption growth rate. COMMERCIAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION PER CAPITA 600,000 TONS OF OIL EQUIVALENT 500,000 400,000 300,000 200,000 100,000-1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 LIQUID FUELS ELECTRICITY COAL TOTAL Figure D1.3 Trend of commercial energy consumption per capita Per unit GDP Commercial energy consumption per unit of GDP has been decreasing steadily, indicating that GDP growth (which is higher than energy consumption growth) is mainly due to non-energy intensive production. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E4 of 22
COMMERCIAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION PER UNIT GDP TONS OF OIL EQUIVALENT 100,000 90,000 80,000 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000-1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 LIQUID FUELS ELECTRICITY COAL TOTAL Figure D1.4 Trend of commercial energy consumption per unit of GDP % change from previous year Coal consumption is the most volatile of the commercial energy carriers. Being mainly consumed by NamPower s Van Eck power station near Windhoek, it could be assumed that this is an indication of NamPower s efforts to avoid costly imports from ESKOM in times of high demand. NAMIBIA'S TOTAL COMMERCIAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION: % CHANGE FROM PREVIOUS YEAR 160.0% 140.0% 120.0% 100.0% 80.0% 60.0% 40.0% 20.0% 0.0% -20.0% -40.0% -60.0% 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 LIQUID FUELS ELECTRICITY COAL TOTAL Figure D1.5: % change of commercial energy consumption from previous year D1.1.2 Energy Consumption Trend by Sector There is at present insufficient information available to disaggregate energy consumption by sector. The sectors that should be considered are Transport, Mining, ENERGY INDICATORS Page E5 of 22
Local Authorities, Water Pumping, Industry, Government and Parastatals, and Households. D1.2 INTERPRETATION The large contribution of the transport sector to the country s energy consumption is a clear indication of the present importance of the service industry. This sector should receive the greatest attention in terms of energy conservation and environmental impact mitigation. D1.3 DATA REQUIREMENTS All information should be available from the Ministry of Mines and Energy. However, it is not presently readily available in the required format to facilitate disaggregation by sector, by region and into rural and urban consumption. The information for this indicator has been obtained from the following sources: Liquid fuels information: Electricity information: Coal information: GDP information: Mr Mburumba Appolus, Chief Economist, Ministry of Mines and Energy Mr A Peens of Caltex South Africa who compiles Namibia s oil and gas industry s data for the Ministry of Mines and Energy. NamPower (Mr John Kaimu, Marketing Manager) Ministry of Mines and Energy (Mr Mburumba Appolus and Mr Markus von Jeney) NamPower (Mr John Kaimu, Marketing Mananger) This is published in a booklet titled National Accounts published by the Central Bureau of Statistics in the National Planning Commission. D1.4 CALCULATION AND FUTURE UPDATING OF THE INDICATOR An Excel spreadsheet has been prepared for the updating of this indicator. The information from the above sources is entered into this spreadsheet for each new year. The liquid fuels information (in kilolitres) is obtained from Caltex South Africa for seven energy carriers (petrol, diesel, paraffin, furnace oil, avgas, jetfuel and liquid petroleum gas). The figures are converted to Tons of Oil Equivalent (TOE) and then added to obtain the total liquid fuels consumption. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E6 of 22
Annual electricity sales data in gigawatt hours (GWh) can be obtained from NamPower for six main customer categories (municipalities, mines, rural areas, ESKOM, Angola and Botswana). This is added and converted to TOE. Total coal consumption data (in metric tonnes) is obtained from the Ministry of Mines and Energy. This is converted to TOE. The total consumption (in TOE) for the three energy carriers are summarised and added to produce the above trend graphs. Population figures for the per capita energy consumption trends are derived from the GDP and GDP per capita figures as published by the Central Bureau of Statistics. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E7 of 22
INDICATOR D2: INDICATOR NAME DEFINITION MEASUREMENT PEAK POWER DEMAND AND ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION Peak Power Demand and Electricity Consumption Electricity consumption level and trend expressed by source and sector Peak power demand is measured in megawatt (MW), while consumption of electrical energy is measured in gigawatt hours (GWh). The shares of power sources are expressed as percentages. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE INDICATOR PURPOSE: This indicator provides an indication of the level and trend of the total annual amount of electricity consumed in the country as well as the country s peak power demand. It should be endeavoured to monitor the trend of sectoral electricity consumption. RELEVANCE: This indicator provides an overview of the country s electricity demand and consumption, the extent of selfsufficiency, and sectoral electricity consumption trends. UNDERLYING VARIABLES AND DEFINITIONS: The indicator measures the contribution of the various electric power sources towards meeting the country s demand for electricity. It monitors the trend of the peak power demand as well as the trend of sectoral electricity consumption. LINKAGES TO OTHER INDICATORS: The indicator is linked to the national commercial energy consumption indicator (D1). MEASUREMENT OF THE INDICATOR: Data for this indicator is obtained from the Ministry of Mines and Energy, and NamPower. Complementary information (eg GDP and population figures) is available from the Central Bureau of Statistics in the National Planning Commission. LIMITATIONS OF THE INDICATOR: Currently not possible to dissagregate all data by sector and by region. Recommendation: Data collection to facilitate disaggregation ENERGY INDICATORS Page E8 of 22
D2.1 PAST PERFOMANCE D2.1.1 Power Source Contribution to Country s Demand for Electrical Energy Although Namibia s installed electricity generation capacity would still be sufficient to meet the country s demand, electrical energy is increasingly being imported from ESKOM. This is primarily due to the uncontrollable water flow of the Kunene River. SHARE OF POWER SOURCES 100% 80% 60% 40% 20% 29% 2% 69% 41% 0% 59% 43% 2% 55% 50% 12% 38% 38% 6% 56% 55% 1% 44% 68% 1% 31% 0% 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 RUACANA VAN ECK AND PARATUS IMPORTS FROM SOUTH AFRICA Figure D2.1 Share of power sources (Source: MME) Electricity imports increase while exports to neighbouring countries vary. Since 1998 Namibia is exporting electricity to Angola and Botswana, but this is still insignificant. The bulk of exports go to ESKOM in times when Ruacana generates in excess of the country s needs. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E9 of 22
ELECTRICITY IMPORTS VS EXPORTS 1,400 1,200 GIGAWATT HOURS 1,000 800 600 400 200 0 (200) (400) 551 793 752 874 758 1,078 1,319 (49) (28) (30) (30) (201) (204) (146) 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 IMPORTS EXPORTS Figure D2.2 Electricity imports vs exports (Source: MME) D2.1.2 Electricity Demand The country s peak power demand has been increasing at an average annual rate of 5% since 1990. The peak demand consistently occurred in July every year since 1990. Bulk electricity sales are gradually increasing, with sales to local authorities rising steadily while sales to mines are decreasing slowly. Sales to rural areas are gradually increasing as can be expected with growing rural consumer numbers. PEAK POWER DEMAND 350 300 MEGAWATT 250 200 150 100 225 240 246 279 251 277 294 321 326 50 0 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Figure D2.3 Namibia s peak power demand (Source: NamPower) ENERGY INDICATORS Page E10 of 22
BULK ELECTRICITY SALES BY CUSTOMER GROUP GIGAWATT HOURS 2000 1800 1600 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Municipalities Mines Rural Areas Eskom Botswana Angola TOTAL Figure D2.4 Bulk electricity sales by customer group (Source: NamPower) D2.1.3 Sectoral Electricity Consumption Electricity consumption trends by sector, for the period 1981 to 1996, are described in the 1998 JICA report, as per Figure D2.5 below. It should be endeavoured to disaggregate sectoral data in this way to further monitor the trends. SECTORAL ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION SOURCE: JICA 1998 1800 1600 GIGAWATT HOURS 1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 LOCAL AUTHORITIES MINING INDUSTRY WATER PUMPING GOVT + PARASTATALS TOTAL Figure D2.5 Sectoral electricity consumption trends (Source: JICA, 1998) ENERGY INDICATORS Page E11 of 22
D2.2 INTERPRETATION Local authorities have become the most significant bulk electricity consumer group, overtaking the mining sector in the early 1990s. The decline in mining electricity consumption is primarily due to closure of mines rather than energy efficiency measures. The steady growth of electricity consumption by local authorities can be ascribed to urbanisation and industrialisation in urban areas. Electricity consumption by the rural sector is gradually increasing, giving hope to less dependence on biomass energy. D2.3 DATA REQUIREMENTS Data for this indicator is available from NamPower and from the Ministry of Mines and Energy. Unfortunately, it is at present not readily available in the sectoral breakdown format. The Ministry of Mines and Energy and NamPower must be requested to compile data in this format for trend monitoring. If it is desired to measure electricity consumption per capita and per unit GDP, the GDP and population information can be obtained from a booklet titled National Accounts published by the Central Bureau of Statistics in the National Planning Commission. D2.4 CALCULATION AND FUTURE UPDATING OF THE INDICATOR An Excel spreadsheet has been prepared for the updating of this indicator. The information from the above sources is entered into this spreadsheet for each new year. Information for shares of power sources and export and import of electricity can be obtained from both the Ministry of Mines and Energy and NamPower. Annual electricity sales data in gigawatt hours (GWh) as well as peak demand information (in MW) can be obtained from NamPower for six main customer categories (municipalities, mines, rural areas, ESKOM, Angola and Botswana). Population figures for the per capita electricity consumption trends, if required, are derived from the GDP and GDP per capita figures as published by the Central Bureau of Statistics. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E12 of 22
INDICATOR D3: INDICATOR NAME DEFINITION MEASUREMENT NATIONAL PETROLEUM FUEL CONSUMPTION National Petroleum Fuel Consumption Petroleum fuel consumption trends Measured in Tonnes Oil Equivalent; as % of total energy use; per capita, per sector; per petroleum fuel type. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE INDICATOR PURPOSE: The indicator shows the importance of petroleum fuels in the national energy and development scene. It portrays the activities and sectors by their degree of dependency on petroleum fuels and impacts of energy policies on petroleum energy use. It also provides an indication of the weight of each fuel type in the total consumption. RELEVANCE: Petroleum fuels are imported and thus decrease in consumption results in foreign currency savings. Consumption of most of these fuels results in environmental pollution and thus increase in intensity contributes positively to environmental protection. The cost and extent of increasing energy efficiency and conservation depend on energy service or activity provided and thus on sector. UNDERLYING VARIABLES AND DEFINITIONS: The indicator shows the extent to which consumers adopting environmental friendly measures or fuel types. LINKAGES TO OTHER INDICATORS: The indicator is linked to National Commercial Energy Consumption (D1). MEASUREMENT OF THE INDICATOR: Data is available from the Ministry of Mines and Energy as well as the Oil Companies Secretariat, Caltex. Complementary information is available from Central Statistics Office. LIMITATIONS OF THE INDICATOR: Currently not possible to dissagregate data by region which could be useful in justifying continued supply in remote areas especially once deregulation takes root. Recommendation: Data collection to facilitate disaggregation ENERGY INDICATORS Page E13 of 22
D3.1 PAST PERFOMANCE D3.1.1 Petroleum Fuel Consumption Trend Total consumption of petroleum fuels has been increasing since 1990 at an average rate of 7% per annum. Compared to the GDP growth rate of about 3.5%, this figure is quite high. This is due to increased population as well as improved access to vehicles for the share of the population that could not easily own vehicles prior to Independence as well as higher social obligations requiring use of petroleum fuels. LIQUID PETROLEUM FUEL CONSUMPTION BY TYPE 900000 800000 700000 KILOLITRES 600000 500000 400000 300000 200000 100000 0 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 PETROL DIESEL MINOR FUELS (LPG,JET FUEL, HFO,PARAFFINS) TOTAL Figure D3.1 Liquid Petroleum Fuel Consumption by Fuel Type (Source: MME) CONSUMPTION OF MINOR LIQUID PETROLEUM FUELS 80000 70000 60000 KILOLITRES 50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 LPG JET FUEL HFO PARAFFINS Figure D3.2 Minor Liquid Petroleum Fuel Consumption by Fuel Type (Source: MME) ENERGY INDICATORS Page E14 of 22
The slowing down in the rate of use from 1996 coincides with the negative real economic growth rate recorded in these years. The low purchasing power of the society hence results in decrease in consumption of petroleum fuels. Increased petroleum energy use generally indicates increase in air pollution particularly in areas where technologies to control emissions are almost non-existent as in Namibia. Promotion of ULP and policies aimed at conservation of petroleum fuels could decrease consumption without compromising the economy. D3.1.2 Petroleum Fuel Share Of The Energy Market Petroleum fuels constitute the largest share of Namibia s energy market, and the trend is increasing. This can be ascribed mainly to the growth in the transport sector. The prospects for substitution of petroleum fuels are rather limited and costly in the short run. It is therefore expected that dependency on these fuels will continue to rise. CONTRIBUTION TO TOTAL COMMERCIAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION (TOE) 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 7% 7% 7% 6% 15% 12% 10% 7% 7% 20% 25% 26% 24% 19% 21% 18% 21% 20% 69% 68% 70% 70% 74% 74% 66% 69% 73% 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 LIQUID FUELS ELECTRICITY COAL Figure D3.3 Liquid fuels share of total commercial energy consumption D3.1.3 Per Capita Petroleum Fuel Consumption As the growth of petroleum fuel consumption has been higher than population growth, the per capita consumption of petroleum fuels has been increasing. This is to be expected in a developing country where growth is occurring with minimal concern for conservation. Increasing per capita energy consumption is generally associated with development. However, with increasing environmental awareness this is not necessarily a desirable ENERGY INDICATORS Page E15 of 22
trend. On the other hand, it should be noted that Namibia is a developing country thus an increase in this indicator is a reflection of increase in development. PER CAPITA LIQUID FUELS CONSUMPTION 500 450 400 350 LITRES 300 250 200 150 100 50-329 322 344 346 387 435 457 450 455 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Figure D3.4 Per capita liquid fuels consumption D3.1.4 Sectoral Consumption Of Petroleum Fuels The transport sector has been the largest consumer of diesel until 1995. Since 1996, the fishing industry is leading the country s diesel consumption. Diesel sales by general traders have also been increasing sharply. DIESEL CONSUMPTION BY SECTOR 120000 100000 KILOLITRES 80000 60000 40000 20000 0 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 transport agriculture mining local authority gov general fishing construction Figure D3.5 Diesel Consumption by Sector (Source: Caltex SA) ENERGY INDICATORS Page E16 of 22
The transport sector is by far the largest consumer of petrol, with other sectors only featuring marginally. There is much less diversity in petrol consumption than in diesel consumption. PETROL CONSUMPTION BY SECTOR 300000 250000 KILOLITRES 200000 150000 100000 50000 0 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 transport other (agriculture, mining, local authority, govt, general, fishing, construction) Figure D3.6 Petrol Consumption by Sector (Source: Caltex SA) LPG is mainly consumed by independent markets, the general public and the agricultural sector. LPG CONSUMPTION BY SECTOR KILOLITRES 8000 7000 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 agriculture retail garage indep.mrkts general other Figure D3.7 LPG Consumption by Sector (Source: Caltex SA) ENERGY INDICATORS Page E17 of 22
D3.1.5 Fuel Type Share Of Petroleum Fuels Consumption The dominant petroleum fuels are diesel and petrol. Their consumption has been notably rising since 1990 which can be attributed to increase in vehicle volumes. The high share of diesel is mainly due to transport requirements, but recently also due to increasing consumption by the fishing industry. FUEL TYPE SHARE 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 35% 47% 18% 34% 49% 17% 39% 46% 14% 44% 42% 14% 43% 42% 16% 41% 43% 16% 41% 42% 17% 38% 43% 19% 36% 48% 16% 36% 46% 18% 36% 49% 15% 36% 50% 14% 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 PETROL DIESEL MINOR FUELS (LPG,JET FUEL, HFO,PARAFFINS) Figure D3.8 Fuel Type Share (Source: MME) LPG and paraffin consumption remains rather low despite growth in population. Since a large share of these fuels is consumed by the household sector, their low usage is an indicator of low uptake or switch to LPG and paraffin. Poor access to these fuels has been the main barrier to increased consumption. D3.2 DATA REQUIREMENTS Petroleum fuels data is being collected by the Ministry of Mines and Energy from the oil companies and is readily available. Population estimates to be obtained from the Central Statistics Office. Information on sectoral petroleum fuels consumption may not be readily available. The Ministry of Mines and Energy should be requested to collect this data. D3.3 CALCULATION AND FUTURE UPDATING OF INDICATOR A spreadsheet is used to update the information on an annual basis and to produce the trend graphs. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E18 of 22
D3.3.1 Petroleum Fuel Consumption Trend Annual fuel use in kilolitres per fuel type, summated to yield the total petroleum fuels consumption, and converted to Tonnes of Oil Equivalent (TOE). D3.3.2 Petroleum Fuel Share Of The Energy Market Total petroleum fuels consumption divided by total energy consumption and expressed as a percentage. D3.3.3 Per Capita Petroleum Fuel Consumption Total petroleum fuels consumption divided by total population. D3.3.4 Sectoral Consumption Of Petroleum Fuels Annual petrol, diesel and LPG consumption in kilolitres per sector. D3.3.5 Fuel Type Share Annual fuel use in TOE per fuel type, as collected for D3.1.1, expressed as a percentage of the total fuel consumption. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E19 of 22
INDICATOR D4: COST OF PETROLEUM FUEL INDICATOR NAME DEFINITION MEASUREMENT Cost of Petroleum Fuel Price of petroleum fuels to the end user. Measured in N$/GJ SIGNIFICANCE OF THE INDICATOR PURPOSE: The indicator provides an indication of the efficiency across the different fuels. It also enables comparison of Namibian prices with other countries. RELEVANCE: In general fuel consumption tends to be price related. Thus price can be used to influence use of particular fuels. UNDERLYING VARIABLES AND DEFINITIONS: The indicator consists of two variables: fuel price and fuel energy content. LINKAGES TO OTHER INDICATORS: The indicator is linked to Total energy prices MEASUREMENT OF THE INDICATOR: Data is available from the Ministry of Mines and Energy. LIMITATIONS OF THE INDICATOR: It is difficult to establish whether the prices reflect the real cost of the fuel since the cost structure is not accessible. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E20 of 22
D4.1 PAST PERFORMANCE Pump prices of diesel and petrol are controlled by the government. The paraffin and LPG prices are not (paraffin was deregulated in April 1993). As for Windhoek, pump prices of petrol and diesel have been rising in all parts of the country. WINDHOEK PUMP PRICES 2.5 2.3 2.1 1.9 N$ PER LITRE 1.7 1.5 1.3 1.1 0.9 petrol 93 diesel ULP 95 paraffin 0.7 0.5 15-Apr-89 01-Dec-89 04-Sep-90 20-Oct-90 12-Nov-90 21-Mar-91 15-Nov-91 15-May-92 21-Apr-93 01-Apr-94 13-May-95 12-Apr-96 21-May-96 01-Aug-96 15-Jan-97 16-Apr-97 16-Jul-97 15-Oct-97 15-Jan-98 17-Apr-98 15-Jul-98 14-Oct-98 15-Jan-99 29-Apr-99 14-Jul-99 FUEL PRICE REVISION DATES Figure D4.1 Pump Prices of Petrol and Diesel in Windhoek (Source: MME) 4.2 INTERPRETATION The large distances from source and wholesale markets are the reasons for Namibia s increasing dependence on transport. Therefore, increases in petroleum fuel prices generally trigger increases in the price of other goods, which has a direct effect on inflation. High fuel prices are a good incentive for energy efficiency measures. In non-transport applications (such as water pumping), high fuel prices make renewable energy technologies attractive as these become more competitive. 4.3 DATA REQUIREMENTS The petrol and diesel costs are regulated by the Ministry of Mines and Energy and are therefore readily available. A regional breakdown should be motivated to MME. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E21 of 22
Future deregulation of the liquid fuels industry will lead to the possibility of fuel costs varying widely due to the influence of market forces. MME must put a system in place where changes in fuel prices are tracked for all parts of the country. 4.4 CALCULATION AND FUTURE UPDATING OF INDICATOR The information is recorded in a spreadsheet as N$/litre. ENERGY INDICATORS Page E22 of 22