Eskom’s Hex battery the first of eight utility-scale projects being deployed across four provinces

Eskom has officially started operating the first of eight utility-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) projects being introduced as part of Phase 1 of a World Bank-funded programme to add batteries with a combined storage capacity of 199 MW and the ability to discharge 833 MWh of electricity over a minimum of four hours. The project in question is the 20 MW/100MWh Hex BESS site, which has been built on Eskom’s distribution network in Worcester in the Western Cape using batteries supplied by Hyosung, of South Korea.
/by

South Africa still weighing impact of charging Eskom interest

South Africa is still assessing the effect of adding interest to a R254-billion debt relief package for state-owned Eskom Holdings as the company prepares to split into three, according to a National Treasury official. Treasury announced in last week’s budget that it would convert the loans in the deal announced in February from interest free to interest bearing — at a rate yet to be determined — to better reflect the cost of the arrangement.
/by

South Africa to miss 2030 emissions goal as it keeps coal plants burning

South Africa will miss its binding 2030 carbon emissions targets under the Paris climate agreement, three senior government officials confirmed, as the country plans to run eight coal-fired power plants for longer than planned. South Africa is the world’s eleventh biggest greenhouse-gas emitter and has one of the world’s highest per capita emissions.
/by