Water-scarce Egypt aims to more than quadruple desalination capacity by granting private companies concessions from its sovereign wealth fund to build 17 plants over the next five years with sustainable solar energy. The plan fits into Egypt’s push to diversify its sources of fresh water for a fast-growing population as it faces competition for Nile river water from the giant hydropower dam that Ethiopia is building upstream.
During the closing panel of the Electricity Forum, Manufacturing Circle executive director Philippa Rodseth said municipalities were the missing piece of the energy security puzzle and an elephant in the room in terms of South Africa achieving a just energy transition. From an industrialisation perspective, she said, the rubber hits the road when municipalities start being engaged – they either enable power to operations or compromise on business’ ability to operate, owing to either a lack of electricity infrastructure and maintenance thereof, or mismanagement of administrative matters.
A study, commissioned by Berlin-based science and the environment association Ökomoderne e.V. and executed by Finnish not-for-profit research company Think Atom, has concluded that Germany’s current policy of closing its nuclear power plants early would result in the country releasing no less than a billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Germany still had six operating nuclear reactors, but they were all scheduled to close down next year, despite being a major source of low-carbon electricity for the country. If, however, Germany kept the reactors operating and generating electricity, and instead closed down coal-fired power stations, the country would be able to completely terminate coal-fired electricity generation by 2028. This would be ten years sooner than planned by the administration of previous Chancellor (currently interim Chancellor) Angela Merkel, pointed out the “One Billion Tons” report, as the study has been named.
Zimbabwe’s State-owned power utility expects to complete the addition of coal-fired units next year, bucking a global trend to reduce reliance on the fossil fuel. The $1.5-billion expansion by Zimbabwe Power Company and China’s Sinohydro will finish one unit next year in September and another in December, adding 600 megawatts. That’s intended to replace 920 megawatts of existing capacity prone to breakdowns, according to Forbes Chanakira, site manager for the Hwange Power Expansion project.
A transition away from fossil fuel-based electricity to renewable-based electricity in South Africa can contribute significantly to job creation, growth and increased availability of electricity to support other commercial activities, four investment and energy specialists noted during a discussion on October 19. Investment management company Futuregrowth portfolio manager and head of unlisted credit Paul Semple said the move away from reliance on a monopolistic and coal-based energy sector to new sources of generation located around the country would need to involve the private sector, which has capital to invest in the energy sector.
A Gauteng-based construction and electrical civils company called Maziya General Services has agreed to pay a R300 000 penalty for allegedly colluding on a City Power tender in June 2018.
The tender related to the appointment of labour contractors for the installation and maintenance of medium- and low-voltage infrastructure including public lighting and major capital expenditure projects.
A Gauteng-based construction and electrical civils company called Maziya General Services has agreed to pay a R300 000 penalty for allegedly colluding on a City Power tender in June 2018.
The tender related to the appointment of labour contractors for the installation and maintenance of medium- and low-voltage infrastructure including public lighting and major capital expenditure projects.
The lack of reliable electricity supply is not only leading to lost production and increased costs across South Africa’s shrinking manufacturing sector, but has left enterprises unable to plan, invest and grow, Manufacturing Circle executive director Philippa Rodseth warned on Tuesday. Speaking at the start of a two-day electricity forum hosted jointly with the Industrial Development Corporation to discuss collaborative solutions to the ongoing problem, Rodseth said load-shedding remained an area of great concern, as did inadequate investment and poor maintenance by municipal distributors.
The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has confirmed the receipt of Eskom’s High Court application, through which the utility is seeking to have the regulator’s decision to reject its fifth multiyear price determination (MYPD5) revenue application reviewed and set aside. However, Nersa has yet to decide whether it will be opposing the application.
The global wind energy sector has released a manifesto calling on governments to get serious about the energy transition and to work with the private sector to rapidly scale up wind and renewable energy installations.
The 90 wind energy companies and associations that contributed to the manifesto say annual wind installations need to scale up by four times the current levels for the world to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
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