In brief
- Puntland's Ministry of Energy, Minerals and Water told the World Bank that SESRP activities were selected without adequate consultation and asked for suspension until scope and implementation arrangements were agreed, according to the bank's February 2025 aide-memoire.
- A World Bank field mission held consultations in Garowe from 16 to 18 February 2025 and agreed to further consultations on the proposed activities.
- The aide-memoire is a mission record as of February 2025 and does not establish what was built or agreed later.
Contents
The World Bank reported in its February 2025 aide-memoire that Puntland's Ministry of Energy, Minerals and Water had written to state that Somali Electricity Sector Recovery Project (SESRP) activities were selected without adequate consultation, and to request suspension of project activities until scope and implementation arrangements were agreed. The bank held a field supervision mission to Garowe from 16 to 18 February 2025.
What the source records
The aide-memoire, covering missions from 3 to 18 February 2025, says the field mission was to consult Puntland's Ministry of Energy, Minerals and Water and NECSOM on the proposed activities in the Federal Member State. After the letter, the mission went to Garowe on 16-18 February 2025 and agreed further consultations. The same record puts the original project amount at USD 100.0 million, with USD 13.2 million (9%) disbursed and a closing date of 31 December 2026, and rates project management as Moderately Unsatisfactory. See the World Bank record.
What it means on site
A suspension request before procurement closes can hold up tender timelines for solar and battery packages and for network work in that load centre. For an engineer or supplier watching Garowe, the practical reading is that programme entry points, such as tender notices and prequalification documents, may pause while scope is agreed, and that bid preparation calendars issued in December 2024 and January 2025 can be reissued. Confirm the current position with the PIU before booking mobilisation or ordering long-lead items.
What the source does not establish
That ministry letter and the agreed consultations are a record of a request and a meeting, not of suspended or resumed works. The aide-memoire is a mission record as of February 2025; the capacity table did not extract cleanly and is not quoted here, and later awards or restructuring are not in the source. Nothing in it says who was responsible for how activities were selected. A contract award notice, a procurement plan revision or a later aide-memoire would confirm the present state.
What to do next
Ask the SESRP Project Implementation Unit, through the World Bank Energy Team named in the aide-memoire, for the current procurement status for the Garowe load centre and for any revision to the request for bids issuance dates set out in Table 2.
Frequently asked questions
Did SESRP works in Garowe stop?
The World Bank's February 2025 aide-memoire records that Puntland's ministry requested suspension until scope and implementation arrangements were agreed, and that a Garowe field mission on 16-18 February 2025 agreed further consultations. It does not record whether works stopped or resumed.
Where can I check the current SESRP procurement position?
Ask the SESRP Project Implementation Unit for the current request for bids status. The aide-memoire lists submission dates for several load centres and names the bank Energy Team that ran the missions.
Sources
Local reporting: this article is written for building work in Garowe and Puntland. Ground conditions, prices and rules differ between places; confirm the details for your own site.