The Fiji Commerce and Employers Federation (FCEF) has presented a probing inquiry into what it claims is a “strategic failure” by Fiji’s electricity utility Energy Fiji Ltd (EFL) to deploy solar photovoltaic generation despite dramatic global cost declines.
In Part 4 of its 21-page submission to the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission (FCCC) last week on FCCC’s December 19, 2025 EFL electricity tariff determination, FCEF said any tariff increase would “effectively socialise the costs of EFL’s strategic failures…to consumers who had no role in making those decisions…”, the outcome of which “… is inconsistent with the Electricity Act’s objective of promoting an efficient electricity industry.”
“Over the past decade, utility-scale solar PV costs have declined by 85-90per cent globally,” FCEF noted. “According to IRENA (International Renewable Energy Agency), the global weighted-average levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) from utility-scale solar PV fell from approximately $US0.38/kWh ($F0.86) in 2010 to $US0.05/kWh ($F0.11) by 2022, with further declines to approximately $US0.04/kWh ($F0.09) by 2024.
“This represents the most dramatic cost decline in energy history.
“Despite Fiji’s exceptional solar resource, EFL’s generation mix shows negligible solar deployment.
“Solar/wind generation has declined from 3.0 GWh (0.30per cent) in 2019 to just 0.8 GWh (0.07per cent) in 2024 – a period during which global solar costs fell by approximately 50per cent and diesel remained Fiji’s largest generation source at 500+ GWh annually.
“This is not technology adoption – it is technology abandonment,” FCEF argued.
It further argued that had EFL begun serious solar deployment in 2015-2016, when costs clearly became competitive, it would have captured the benefit of declining costs over the subsequent decade while simultaneously reducing diesel exposure.
“The counterfactual is significant: aggressive solar deployment beginning in 2015, reaching 20-30 per cent penetration by 2020 (comparable to Hawaii’s trajectory), would have materially reduced diesel generation during the high-price period of 2022-2024.
“Analysis of comparable systems indicates that solar lifecycle costs are 30-50per cent below diesel in Pacific Island contexts when fuel transport costs and price volatility are properly accounted for.
“Earlier deployment could have avoided tens of millions in cumulative fuel costs over the 2015-2024 period.
“These avoided costs would have improved EFL’s financial position and reduced the revenue requirement that consumers now face.”
FCEF noted that Island peers (Hawaii, Barbados, Seychelles, Maldives) achieved 20-40 per cent renewable penetration during the same period Fiji maintained near-zero solar deployment.
“Allowing consumers to bear costs arising from prolonged delay in adopting globally competitive technologies rewards strategic failure and creates perverse incentives,” it stated.
FCCC chief executive officer Senikavika Jiuta said the intent of the consultations was to hear from all stakeholders.
“The exclusive session with FCEF was held for that purpose, namely to hear their views and include them in the final determination assessment, alongside all other submissions,” Ms Jiuta said.
Supported by its detailed submission, FCEF is urging FCCC to set aside the December 19, 2025 determination and to restart the assessment process in full.
