Eskom says it will stop power cuts from 20:00 on Friday

State-owned monopoly power supplier Eskom said on Friday it would lift all planned power cuts – locally called “load-shedding” – in the country from 8pm local time. The company, which runs a fleet of ageing thermal coal-fired power plants, had been implementing power cuts ranging from two to seven hours a day over the past week due to breakdowns at its sites.
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Immediate power restoration to Joburg market critical for food safety, says Agri SA

The lack of electricity at the Johannesburg market since October 26 owing to cable theft is having a disastrous impact on the quality and safety of agricultural products, agricultural industry organisation Agri SA executive director Christo van der Rheede said on October 29. “During power outages, the market does not have the ability to supply power to the cold storage rooms. This has resulted in these storage rooms operating without cooling since October 26, with disastrous consequences to agricultural products. The value of stock in these cold rooms amounts to between R30-million and R61-million.”
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SAWEA welcomes 1 600 MW of onshore wind projects to be procured under REIPPPP bid window 5

The South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) has welcomed the announcement that 12 onshore wind projects have been included in Bid Window 5 (BW5) of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP). The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) on October 28 announced the 25 preferred bidders for BW5.
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G-20 leaders plan to stop funding offshore coal, draft statement says

Leaders of the Group of 20 wealthy economies are preparing to pledge to stop funding foreign coal-fired plants, but are still wrangling over climate objectives that are crucial to keeping global temperatures in check, according to a draft statement for this weekend’s summit.

The 11-page document seen by Bloomberg, which is still being negotiated by diplomats in Rome ahead of the meeting, shows key deliverables have yet to be agreed. The draft, dated Thursday, refers to the “existential challenge” of climate change.

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Scatec awarded 273 MW of solar projects under REIPPPP bid window 5

Renewable energy producer Scatec has had three solar projects, totalling 273 MW, included under Bid Window 5 of the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP). Scatec will sell power from the solar plants to power utility Eskom under a 20-year power purchase agreement.
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Growthpoint, Rubicon stress the environmental advantages of renewables in green buildings

US automotive manufacturer Tesla’s South African partner Rubicon Group and JSE-listed Growthpoint Properties have joined forces to highlight the environmental advantages of making use of renewable energy to provide some of the power requirements of buildings, such as Growthpoint’s 144 Oxford, in Rosebank. Sustainable technology company Rubicon Group brought the first Tesla Model X Performance Edition all-electric sports utility vehicle (SUV) into the country to raise renewable energy’s profile in the country, a move which the companies believe to be indicative that the combination of a high-performance car and highly-efficient green buildings “is powering greater awareness of positive ecological change”.
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