Bill opening way for competitive electricity market forwarded to Parliament

Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe has published an explanatory summary of the much-anticipated Electricity Regulation Act Amendment Bill, which is now poised to be introduced to the National Assembly for consideration. In his introductory note to the summary Mantashe sets out the purpose of the proposed amendments to be the following:
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Ginlong Solis launching inverters with enhanced outage functions in South Africa

Shenzhen Stock Exchange-listed inverter manufacturer Ginlong Solis Technologies will launch its S6 Advanced Power Hybrid Inverter for South Africa at the Solar Show Africa, being held in Johannesburg on April 25 and 26. The inverters have added generator connections and control functions, and each works as a fully independent power centre to meet the needs of the South African market for residential and commercial and industrial projects, where power outages have become a daily occurrence, the company says.
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South Africa must stick to plans to deal with electricity crisis – BLSA

The National Energy Crisis Committee (NECOM), set up under the Presidency, has brought together the best people and put together a plan that has the best chance of resolving the country’s greatest economic challenge – the electricity crisis, states Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) CEO Busi Mavuso. Business has backed that plan, going so far as to raise R100-million to pay for the technical skills needed for its implementation, she points out in her latest weekly newsletter.
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Ramaphosa seeks to offer just energy transition assurances despite coal-extension proposal

President Cyril Ramaphosa has denied that the current process of re-examining the timeframes for the closure of coal power stations represents a reversal of the country’s position on the just energy transition. In his weekly newsletter, the President argued that any decision on decommissioning will be informed by a detailed technical assessment of the feasibility of continuing to operate older plants.
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Two Eskom employees, fuel oil truck driver arrested for fraud and theft

State-owned Eskom reports that two employees have been arrested in relation to alleged fuel theft. The utility notes that, on April 6, the South African Police Services’ (SAPS’s) Illicit Mining and Economic Infrastructure Task Team was observing various fuel trucks in the vicinity of the Kendal power station, when they noticed a fuel tanker approaching from the power station.
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Unions confirms they rejected Eskom’s 3.75% wage offer

As the latest round of Eskom wage negotiations is under way until the end of May, trade unions the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa and Solidarity have confirmed they have rejected Eskom’s offer of a 3.75% increase, owing to it being below the inflation rate of 7.1%. The negotiations will span three rounds, with the first having been held on April 19.
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Aberdare launches e-commerce platform, to add battery storage solution to its portfolio

Cable manufacturer Aberdare has launched a new e-commerce platform to enable the online sale of its products. “As we look forward to the digital future, it is imperative that we adapt to ensure we continue to add value to our customers as we also embrace the digital Internet of Things and artificial intelligence era.
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Pendulum swing from coal to renewables will spell disaster – NSBE

A “pendulum swing” from coal to renewable energy will not guarantee baseload grid stability in the foreseeable future, National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) president Mdu Mlaba has said.   “It will be completely irresponsible and will plunge the country deeper into the energy crisis,” he warned during a Renewable Energy Dialogue, hosted by the NSBE at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) campus, in Johannesburg, on April 20 – wherein pundits discussed pertinent issues that relate to how South Africa might go about bringing an end to loadshedding.
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Loadshedding negatively impacting South Africans’ emotions, study confirms

The University of Johannesburg’s Professor Talita Greyling, a wellbeing economist, has looked at the crisis of loadshedding and has provided statistics to investigate how the continuous blackouts impact South Africans’ emotions. She found that the emotions anger, disgust, fear and sadness almost doubled for the period from April 13 to 16 this year, compared with the same period in 2022. During the period under review, South Africans were faced with Stage 6 loadshedding and rumours that the country could soon face Stage 10 loadshedding.
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Eskom chair Mpho Makwana says SA needs to decarbonise fast

As President Cyril Ramaphosa considers a proposal to extend the lifespan of some of South Africa’s coal-fired power plants, Eskom chairperson Mpho Makwana has said the country needs to decarbonise its economy rapidly. “We need real change in a short space of time to transform and decarbonise our energy sector, transportation sector, food systems, and built environments,” Makwana wrote in Nedbank’s 2022 annual report, published on Thursday.
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