HARGEISA — The House of Representatives has rejected proposed amendments by President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi (Cirro) to the Somaliland Electricity Energy Management Law (Law No. 81/2026), in a move that underscores deepening divisions over the management of the national power grid and the potential import of electricity from Ethiopia.
The President had returned the bill to parliament seeking revisions to Article 47, which originally called for the establishment of a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) power company tasked with managing the national electricity transmission network. In his proposal, Mr. Cirro urged lawmakers to replace the joint-venture model with a fully state-owned enterprise, arguing that a government-run company would be better positioned to oversee the development, maintenance, and fair regulation of the grid, ensuring equitable access for all licensed power generators and distributors.
However, legislators rejected the President’s proposal and voted to retain the joint-ownership structure between the state and private sector.
The President also sought to amend Article 53, which governs the importation of electricity from foreign countries. He proposed granting exclusive authority to a state-owned national power company to handle all cross-border electricity procurement. Lawmakers again overruled him, deciding instead that the joint government-private company would be responsible for any future imports.
At the heart of the parliamentary resistance is the question of electricity sourcing from neighboring Ethiopia. Private power firms are widely believed to be advocating for the joint-company model to ensure they have a direct stake in any future power imports, should Somaliland turn to Ethiopia for supply. By rejecting the President’s amendments, the House has effectively blocked a state monopoly over such imports, preserving private sector involvement in the decision-making and procurement process.
The outcome marks a significant setback for the President’s push for greater state control over the energy sector, and sets the stage for continued debate over Somaliland’s energy security and the role of foreign power imports in meeting domestic demand.
