The Ismail cabinet reportedly approved hiring a consultant to revisit the feasibility study on a feed-in tariff rate for waste-to-energy projects, government sources tell Al Borsa. The government is reportedly leaning towards setting a three-tier FiT system: the first would be fuel derived from burning such things as rice straws with a FiT rate of EGP 1.21 per KW; the second tier would be from biogas, with an FiT rate of EGP 1.45 per KW; and refuse derived fuel (RDF) with a rate of EGP 1.60 per KW. The move appears to be an about face by the Electricity Ministry, as minister Mohamed Shaker had said back in July that the government was scrapping plans to impose an FiT rate on waste-to-energy products. He announced that the ministry would will set the fees on a case-by-case basis, after initially settling on a rate of EGP 1.45 per KW. No reason was given behind the change of heart, but we speculate that the flood of investments in the solar FiT program may have swayed opinions. The government hopes to tender waste-to-energy to the private sector in 1Q2018, said New and Renewable Energy Authority head Mohamed El Khayat.

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