S&P places Eskom on CreditWatch positive on expected government support

Ratings agency S&P Global Ratings has placed its ratings on State-owned utility Eskom on CreditWatch with positive implications, including its ‘CCC+’ issuer credit rating and ‘zaB’ South Africa national scale long-term rating. S&P attributes this to the South African government’s planned R254-billion ($14-billion) debt relief agreement, which the agency expects will address Eskom’s near-term debt obligations once implemented and give the utility room to focus on operational improvements and electricity sector reform targets.
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NRF CEO Dr Fulufhelo Nelwamondo named SAIEE Engineer of the Year

Independent statutory body the National Research Foundation (NRF) CEO Dr Fulufhelo Nelwamondo has been named Engineer of the Year by the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers (SAIEE) at its 2022 Annual Awards held at the Indaba Hotel and Conference Centre, in Johannesburg, on March 10. The SAIEE Engineer of the Year Award is conferred on a member of the SAIEE judged to have energetically and voluntarily worked towards promoting electrical science and its applications for the benefit of its members and the Southern African community.
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Massmart, RCS offer retail customers solar funding loans

Mass retailer Massmart, in partnership with consumer finance company Retail Credit Solutions (RCS), has introduced a solar energy funding solution in the form of a loan of up to R250 000 for customers wanting to invest in alternative energy sources to cope with loadshedding. Massmart offers flexible payment plans in which fixed monthly repayments can be tailored to the customer’s monthly expense budget. To achieve this, the repayment period can be extended from 12 to 60 months, the company said.
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Eskom granted exemption to operate temporary stacks at Kusile for 13 months

Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister Barbara Creecy has granted Eskom exemption that will enable it to operate temporary stacks at the Kusile power station, in Mpumalanga, for 13 months without using the flue-gas delsuphurisation (FGD) mechanism. The exemption, which was granted on March 14, has not been extended in terms of the newly published State of Disaster regulations as requested by Eskom, but rather in line with Section 59 of the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act (NEMAQA), and includes several conditions.
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Schneider Electric, UJ open 4IR experience room for engineering students

Energy management and automation multinational Schneider Electric and the University of Johannesburg (UJ) Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment have unveiled a Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Experience Room on the university’s Auckland Park campus. The room is a practical demonstration of the inner workings of 4IR, its interconnectivity and relevance in sectors such as energy, and is focused on engineering faculty students, the company said.
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South Africa has plans in place to safeguard food supply amid power crisis

South Africa’s government has contingency plans in place to safeguard key food-production facilities against an escalation in power cuts that are already at record levels, the nation’s agriculture minister said. Africa’s most industrialized economy has been subjected to rolling blackouts, known locally as loadshedding, since 2008 because state power utility Eskom Holdings has been unable to meet demand from its old and poorly maintained plants. The problem has escalated since last year, raising concerns that food security is at risk.
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€15m Just SA launched in bid to unlock Mpumalanga transition projects

A new €15-million initiative has been launched to provide research and technical support for “catalytic” just transition projects in South Africa’s Mpumalanga province, currently the centre of South Africa’s coal industry and where 22 GW of coal-fired power capacity is scheduled for retirement before 2035. Dubbed Just SA, the ‘Just Transition to a Decarbonised Economy for South Africa’ project is being funded by the German government’s International Climate Initiative and will be implemented over a five-year period.
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Karpowership SA responds to latest setbacks to its proposed gas-to-power projects

For three years, gas-to-power supplier Karpowership South Africa (Karpowership SA) has been subjected to multiple allegations about its proposed gas-to-power projects in Saldanha Bay, Richards Bay and the Port of Ngqura, despite the much-needed additional electricity supply it can inject into the grid.
The Turkish parent company Karpowership has long been ready to supply 1.2 GW of power to South Africa using ship-mounted gas-to-power plants; however, a series of lawsuits and complaints by environmental groups and rival bidders have continued to hamper its efforts.
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Consumer commission warns of safety issues with some GIZZU portable power stations

The National Consumer Commission is urging all persons in possession of GIZZU 300 Wh and 500 Wh portable power stations to immediately stop using these and to return them to the supplier. The importer and distributor, Syntech Distribution – the supplier – has informed the commission of the precautionary recall of these products following reports of fire hazards, as some of these devices combusted while charging.
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African financial institutions will continue to fund fossil fuel projects on the continent

While Africa is part of the global transition to low carbon energy, the consumption of oil and gas on the continent will increase, at least in the short term. So observed Standard Bank executive energy & infrastructure coverage: East Africa Maina Kigundu at the African Refiners and Distributors Association conference, at the Century City Convention Centre in Cape Town, on Tuesday. The decarbonization plans of international corporations were affecting investment in Africa. There was decreasing investment in the oil sector, but increasing investment was likely in the liquified natural gas (LNG) sector, he reported.
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