Eskom has cautioned the public that its generation system remains constrained and Stage 2 load-shedding could be implemented on Friday night, or during peak times on Saturday and Sunday. “The cold front expected during the weekend is also anticipated to result in increased demand for electricity, adding to the capacity constraints,” Eskom said.
Creamer Media’s Chanel de Bruyn speaks to Engineering News Editor Terence Creamer about plans by South African coal miners Seriti Resources, Exxaro Resources and Thungela Resources in the renewables space and how that positions them for the future. This is all happening at a time when the coal market is experiencing significant demand growth as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the impact thereof on the global energy sector.
South African municipalities’ debt to state-owned power utility Eskom Holdings rose almost 10% since March to R49.1-billion by the end of July, Deputy President David Mabuza said. “This is not a desirable state of affairs for both Eskom and municipalities,” Mabuza told lawmakers in a briefing on Thursday. “For that reason, Eskom forms part of a multi-disciplinary revenue committee which is meant to address payment of debt to the utility by municipalities and organs of State.”
In April, heavy lifting shipping company BigLift Shipping announced it had been contacted by global oil and gas company TechnipFMC and it had subsequently successfully made three heavy lift vessels available for work on the Coral floating liquefied natural gas development in Mozambique. The vessels were contracted to mobilize the client’s equipment from various ports in Europe – Aberdeen, in the UK, Moss, in Norway, Le Trait, in France, Bilbao, in Basque Country, in Spain and Marina di Carrara, in Italy – and were destined for the Maputo and Pemba Bay ports in Mozambique.
While the jury is still out on how exactly climate financing will be used to set South Africa’s energy sector on a low-carbon path, there are various other impacts and changes to industries and households looming, that are not discussed as often.
Some of these issues and considerations were unpacked in a webinar hosted by the Black Energy Professionals Association, with comments from exhibition host Enlit Africa head of content Claire Volkwyn, research institute Trade and Industry Policy Strategies senior economist Nokwando Maseko and civic education institution Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung South climate justice project manager Dr Roland Ngam.
Green hydrogen development company Hyphen Hydrogen Energy (Hyphen) is optimistic that the implementation agreement for a planned $10-billion project will be signed with the Namibian government by year-end. The signing of the implementation agreement will trigger the commencement of the front-end engineering and design phase of the project, which will be constructed over two phases with the eventual goal of producing 350 000 t/y of green hydrogen from 5 GW to 6 GW of renewable generation capacity and a 3 GW electrolyser.
The Ilanga Cup is Southern Africa’s first closed-track endurance circuit event, which is focused on promoting innovations in renewable and alternative energy. Darren Parker attended the Ilanga Cup where he saw teams go head-to-head in an endurance challenge.
The Governor of the US State of California, Gavin Newsom of the centre-left Democratic Party, has circulated draft legislation among the State’s lawmakers that would extend the life of California’s one-and-only nuclear power plant (NPP), Diablo Canyon. The draft legislation has been shown to various US news media. Originally commissioned in 1985, the two-reactor NPP is currently due to be shut down in 2024-2025, with the first reactor being shut down in late 2024 and the second in August 2025. It currently provides the State with 8.6% of its electricity, but 17% of its zero-carbon electricity.
Stage 2 load-shedding will be implemented at 16:00 to 24:00 on Wednesday and at the same time on Thursday, Eskom announced. The breakdowns of a generation unit each at Duvha, Kendal and Kriel power stations during the last 24 hours, as well as the delays in returning units to service at Arnot, Kusile and Tutuka power stations have put a severe strain on the power generation system.
Food and beverage manufacturer Tiger Brands is moving to procure 2 MW of solar across four manufacturing sites as part of a broader initiative to introduce renewable energy across 35 sites by 2030 to meet 65% of its electricity requirements. The initial capacity will be procured from independent power producers, or IPPs, which will supply the electricity under long-term power purchase agreements to Henneman Mill, in the Free State, King Foods, in the North West, as well as Tiger Brands’ beverages and home and personal care manufacturing plants in Gauteng.
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