Source: Tonga Government
Figure 1: Guest of Honours; Crown Prince Tupouto’a (fourth from left), Crown Princess Sinaitakala Tuku’aho (third from left), Princess Halaevalu (front row), Development Partners and the rest of the delegation during the Commissioning the Solar Powered Mini-grid
Niuafo’ou, Tonga 11th October, 2024 – Crown Prince Tupouto’a ‘Ulukalala, Crown Princess Sinaitakala Tuku’aho and Princess Halaevalu commissioned the Solar Mini-grid system of Niuafo’ou. Minister of MEIDECC, Hon Fekita ‘Utoikamanu, HE Brek Batley, senior delegations from ADB, Tonga Power Limited, MEIDECC and the Prime Minister’s Office accompanied the guests of honor at the commissioning.
Enthusiasm in the eyes of individuals who are granted the opportunity to enhance their access to electricity from limited hours each day to 24 hours per day, seven days a week was a was a significant milestone observed during the Commissioning of the solar mini-grid. The people of Niuafo’ou now have access to 24/7 electricity service generated from Renewable Energy.
“I wish to reaffirm the Government’s commitment and Tonga’s unwavering faith on renewable energy as a key to addressing the single greatest threat to small island developing states – climate change”, said the Honourable Minister during the Commissioning.
This is one of the Government’s ongoing efforts to improve quality and reliability of electricity supply that is generated from renewable energy. It is not just a technical shift from fossil fuels to renewable sources; it is a transformation that touches upon every aspect of Tongan lives especially in such remote communities like Niuafo’ou.
The solar mini-grid was funded under the Tonga Renewable Energy Project (TREP) which was made possible through the kind assistance of the Green Climate Fund (GCF), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Australian Aid, and the Government of Tonga with the support of Tonga Power Limited and the extraordinary efforts of the Principal Contractor, Infratec NZ and its sub-contractors during the installation stage.
Tungua and Moungaone are in progress for the Haapai Islands and the 4 islands in Vavau (Hunga, Otea, Falevai, and Ofu) under the same project.