WindAc Africa 2021 kicks off after two-year hiatus

The South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) held its fourth industry academic conference – WindAc Africa 2021 – on October 5, with a keynote address delivered by Danish Energy Agency (DEA) director-general Kristoffer Böttzauw.

The DEA is a SAWEA strategic partner and a keen supporter of the wind energy sector.

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Eskom is now world’s biggest sulphur dioxide emitter, CREA says

Eskom Holdings, South Africa’s coal-reliant power utility, has become the world’s biggest emitter of sulphur dioxide, a pollutant linked to ailments ranging from asthma to heart attacks, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) said. Eskom produced 1 600 kilotons of the pollutant in 2019, the latest year for which comparable data is available, according to the report released on Tuesday by CREA, an air-pollution research organization. That was more than any company, and the total emission of the power sector of any country with the exception of India.
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China’s CMOC eyes solar and hydro for Congo copper/cobalt expansion

China Molybdenum Co (CMOC) is looking to tap more hydropower projects and potentially use solar energy as it expands its production of copper and cobalt in Democratic Republic of Congo, its vice-chairperson said. Steele Li, who is also chief investment officer at CMOC , said the company was committed to hydropower through the supply arrangement it inherited when it bought a majority stake in the giant Tenke Fungurume mine in Congo in 2016.
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Full-scale mock-up of and advanced small modular nuclear reactor unveiled in the UK

Two nuclear technology companies, the Anglo-Dutch U-Battery and the UK’s Cavendish Nuclear, have unveiled a full-scale mock-up of U-Battery’s advanced modular reactor (AMR) design. The mock-up includes the reactor vessel, the intermediate heat exchanger vessel, and the connecting duct (which is U-shaped). The creation of the mock-up was made possible by funding from the UK’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, provided under its Advanced Manufacturing and Materials …
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COP26 must unlock climate support from developed to developing countries – Creecy

South Africa’s Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister Barbara Creecy says the COP26 climate talks scheduled for Glasgow, Scotland, in November need to prioritise the securing of finance, technology and capacity building support from developed to developing countries. Addressing a virtual event on Monday, Creecy reiterated that Africa – which had contributed only one percent of global emissions historically and was already being unfairly burdened by the effects of climate change – required such support if it was to turn its climate change liability into a new opportunity for green growth and job creation.
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Wind Atlas South Africa project offers freely available wind resource modelling methods, data …

The third phase of the Wind Atlas South Africa (Wasa 3) project has developed free-to-use wind resource estimation methods, data and tools that private and public organisations can use to inform decisions and policies. These can also be shared with the rest of Africa and the world to support wind energy use for sustainable development, says United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) South Africa resident representative Dr Ayodele Odusola.
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BIC manufacturing plant goes green four years ahead of schedule

Stationary manufacturer BIC South Africa has declared that 100% of its electricity use at its Johannesburg-based stationery manufacturing plant is now green. The announcement comes four years ahead of schedule and is a first for BIC factories on the African continent.
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IEA implores countries to help lower the production cost of hydrogen

The International Energy Agency (IEA) reports in its ‘Global Hydrogen Review 2021’ report, released on October 4, that although investment is increasing in hydrogen projects to support a clean energy transition, further efforts are needed to reduce costs and encourage wider use across sectors.

As such, the agency says governments need to move faster and more decisively on a range of policy measures to enable low-carbon hydrogen to fulfil its potential to help the world reach net-zero emissions, while also supporting energy security.

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Eskom says Nersa’s MYPD5 rejection creates ‘regulatory vacuum’

State-owned utility Eskom says the rejection, by the Energy Regulator, of its latest allowable-revenue application has created a regulatory vacuum for the electricity supply industry. “Eskom is accordingly considering how to proceed, and is taking advice on its position following the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) decision,” the utility said in a statement on Friday.
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US envoy says grants and concessional loans will be needed to support South Africa’s …

US Deputy Special Envoy for Climate Dr Jonathan Pershing has described South Africa’s latest climate pledge as “extraordinary” and says the US and other donor countries will seek to support South Africa’s ambition to transition to a decarbonised economy “by the middle of this century” with concessional finance. Pershing visited South Africa this week as part of a broader delegation of climate envoys from the UK, France, Germany and the European Union during which meetings were held with government Ministers and officials, trade unions, business and civil society.
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