LESOTHO: ENERGY REPORTING REQUIREMENT INFORMATION

UNCLAS MASERU 000068 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT ALSO FOR AAB/ESC/IEC (B. GLENN GRIFFIN),AF/S E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON SENV APER ABUD ENRG LT SUBJECT: LESOTHO: ENERGY REPORTING REQUIREMENT INFORMATION REF: STATE 10743 ¶1. In accordance with reftel request, Embassy Maseru submits the following information with regards to our mission's energy portfolio. The answers below are in response to reftel paragraph 4, point A through point D. ¶A. Embassy Maseru's energy portfolio resides in the Economic/Commercial unit, which is part of the Public Diplomacy, Economic, and Political Section. The unit is composed of one PD/Econ/Pol (PDEP) Officer and one full-time LES Economic Specialist. The energy portfolio in the section is small as Lesotho is not the origin or consumer of significant energy resources. Lesotho has one hydropower plant which produces exclusively for domestic energy consumption for most of the year. ¶B. We estimate that the LES Economic Specialist spends approximately 5% of her time on energy issues and the PDEP Officer spends about 5% of his time on energy issues. ¶C. Reporting on the energy is occasional and targeted to specific situations in Lesotho. For example, post recently reported on developments regarding how the South African electricity shortage is effecting Lesotho. Neither the PDEP Officer nor the LES Economic Specialist have any special qualifications or background related to the energy field. ¶D. The post does not have funds allocated specifically for energy reporting or programming. Pro-rated salary cost for the LES Economic Specialist is approximately $1,100 per annum. ¶2. For further information, please contact Public Diplomacy, Economic, and Political Officer Christopher Smith (smithcm3@state.gov). NOLAN