Zwanani Mathe appointed SANEDI CEO

The board of applied energy research organisation the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) has appointed of Dr Zwanani Titus Mathe as CEO, with effect from October 1. Mathe has 18 years of experience to back a decorated academic record and his appointment will set the organisation in good stead to continue fulfilling its vital mandate, the organisation states.
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Applications open for 2023 Wind Industry Internship Programme

The South Africa Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) has announced that the Wind Industry Internship Programme (WIIP) will be running for the second time next year, with applications now open. The WIIP first launched in January, when 15 interns where placed and mentored by SAWEA member organisations for 12 months.   The WIIP internship offers hands-on experience to exceptional South African students who are committed to building a career in renewable wind energy.   The purpose of the WIIP is to provide young professionals who have recently completed a degree – or those undertaking graduate programmes – with the opportunity to gain practical work experience in line with their studies and interests, and to expose them to work that is related to sustainable energy.   SAWEA is encouraging young aspiring professionals to apply for 2023 internships.   FOCUS AREAS
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Combat energy poverty as well as achieve decarbonisation – Mantashe

Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe on Tuesday warned that the need to transition to low-carbon energy sources sat “uncomfortably” with energy poverty in Africa. He did so in his keynote address at the Africa Oil Week 2022 conference in Cape Town. He pointed out that while Africa was under pressure to decarbonise fast, many people in Africa still had no access to electricity. And, even those who did have access, as in South Africa, now had to minimise their electricity consumption due to rising electricity costs. (He made a passing reference to loadshedding – scheduled power cuts or outages – in South Africa.)
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Cape Town proposes rewards system for customers who reduce their electricity use on demand

To protect its customers from some of the impacts of load-shedding, the City of Cape Town has issued a tender that will see customers rewarded for reducing their power use at a given time so that city-supplied customers can be protected from the impacts of load-shedding. These Cape Town “power heroes” will be key in the city’s load-shedding protection efforts going forward, where a reduction in energy use of 60 MW is targeted.
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56 wind and solar projects bid into South Africa’s enlarged renewables round

A total of 56 wind and solar projects have been submitted by prospective bidders under the sixth bid window (BW6) of South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPPP), which has been expanded to 4 200 MW from an initial allocation of 2 600 MW. The bids, which are split across five provinces, including 24 in the Western Cape province alone, have a combined capacity of more than 9 600 MW across 23 wind and 33 solar photovoltaic (PV) bids.
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Eskom’s chairperson says management to get ‘benefit of the doubt’

Eskom Holdings’ new chairperson Mpho Makwana said the board isn’t planning any immediate changes to management and will take between 30 and 60 days to assess the company’s power plants. Makwana, who was appointed along with almost all of the board this month, said the plants’ perfromance will be looked at to see what needs to be done to make them operational at an average of 75% of the time, a target set by Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan. Currently their so-called electricity availability factor, a measure of when they can produce electricity, is less than 60%.
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Anglo, EDF form new joint renewable energy thrust

Diversified mining company Anglo American, in partnership with EDF Renewables, on Tuesday announces an agreement to form a new jointly owned company, Envusa Energy, to develop a regional renewable energy ecosystem in South Africa. The energy ecosystem is also expected to catalyse economic activity in South Africa’s renewable energy sector, supporting the country’s broader just energy transition. It follows the two companies signing a memorandum of understanding in March to explore the ecosystem’s development, designed to meet Anglo American’s operational power requirements in South Africa and support the resilience of the local electricity supply systems and the wider decarbonisation of energy in the country.
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A landmark $8.5bn climate finance deal hangs in the balance

A landmark $8.5-billion deal to help wean South Africa off its dependence on coal is hanging in the balance amid fraught negotiations with rich donor countries over how the funds should be spent. The climate finance deal, unveiled at UN-led talks in Glasgow last year, was hailed as a prototype for helping other coal-dependent developing countries transition to cleaner energy sources. Its success or failure could have a knock-on effect at next month’s COP27 summit in Egypt, which is expected to focus on the financing needs of poorer countries adapting to a warming atmosphere.
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