Solar company installs minigrids in Malawi

Following Covid-19-related delays, solar energy company SustainSolar successfully commissioned its first Sustain Compact containerised solar generation unit in Mthembanji, Malawi, says SustainSolar managing director Tobias Hobbach. This solar generation unit was delivered as a minigrid under the Rural Energy Access through Social Enterprise and Decentralisation project. It was funded by the Scottish government in collaboration with the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow and international development and emergency relief organisation United Purpose.
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IPP Office says next renewables bid window by end Jan ‘latest’, but possibly before year-end

The head of South Africa’s Independent Power Producer (IPP) Office, which performs the IPP procurement function on behalf of the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE), says discussions are under way with the department to finalise the roll-out plan for the Section 34 determination that caters for the procurement of 11 813 MW of new generation capacity. Speaking during a webinar on Thursday, IPP Office CEO Tshifhiwa Bernard Magoro said that the fifth bid window, known as BW5, of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) would be launched by the end of January 2021 at the latest, but that the request for proposals (RFP) could be released before the end of 2020.
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Some positive movement on the electricity front

Creamer Media’s Chanel de Bruyn speaks to Creamer Media Editor Terence Creamer about the National Energy Regulator of South Africa’s concurrence with a Ministerial determination that paves the way for the resumption of regular procurement and the significance of Eskom having signalled its support for the Ministerial determination.
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Renewables body optimistic next bidding round can be ‘expedited’

The South African Renewable Energy Council (Sarec) expressed optimism on Wednesday that the long-awaited fifth bid window (BW5) of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme could be fast-tracked in light of the energy regulator’s recent concurrence with a Ministerial determination opening the way for the procurement of 11 813 MW of new generation capacity. In a statement signed by chairperson Terence Govender, Sarec said the determination “came ahead of its initially anticipated date”, giving its members hope that the BW5 request for proposals (RFP) could be “expedited”.
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Brand new 33 MW Western Cape wind farm connects to grid

The 33 MW Excelsior Wind Energy Facility, in the Western Cape, has been connected to South Africa’s load-shedding-prone national grid, with all 13 of its wind turbines having been successfully commissioned. The facility is believed to be the first Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme Bid Window 4 (BW 4) project in the Western Cape to achieve the milestone. The province has three BW 4 wind farms under construction and nine in total.
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Mpact declares force majeure at Springs mill amid municipal power outage

Paper and packaging producer Mpact has declared force majeure at its Springs paper mill in relation to a near-month-long power interruption, and as a consequence, not being able to produce. The mill has been without electricity supply from 18:00 on August 19, when an explosion and fire at the municipal substation in Ekurhuleni occurred.
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Solarise Africa welcomes third investor backing clean energy projects in Africa

Pan-African energy leasing company Solarise Africa has landed a further $10-million investment to drive Africa’s clean energy expansion.

The company’s Series B investment round welcomed French development finance institution Proparco, alongside existing investors, investment firm Energy Access Ventures (EAV) and electrification financing initiative EDFI ElectriFI.

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Windaba to be hosted virtually, offer online business platform

The yearly Windaba conference will take place virtually this year on October 26 and 27.

The renewable energy sector and its stakeholders will also gather on the Windaba 2020 Virtual Marketplace platform to unpack the role of the industry in the energy transition for the decade ahead.

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Eskom advises of temporary N3 road closure for work on overhead power line

State-owned Eskom has been granted permission from the South African National Roads Agency for the temporary road closure of the N3 north and southbound, just after the N3 De Hoek Toll Plaza, from 10:00 to 13:00 on September 17, to dismantle and remove a decommissioned high-voltage transmission overhead power line crossing the highway.  All three phase conductors will be removed sequentially.
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Eskom secures farmland as security for debt owed by Matjhabeng municipality

The Matjhabeng local municipality, in the Free State, has agreed to hand over to State-owned power utility Eskom 139 farms belonging to the municipality as security for debt of R3.4-billion owed by the municipality to Eskom. The farms are valued at about R2.5-billion.
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