Stage 5 loadshedding suspended, Stage 4 to continue

Eskom has announced that there will not be any Stage 5 loadshedding for the week, as previously communicated; however, Stage 4 will continue until further notice.  This is due to the return of generating units at Kriel, Majuba and Matimba power stations. 
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South Africa must make green hydrogen investment decision in next 12 months

For South Africa to take full advantage of the opportunities presented by the growing global demand for green hydrogen, management consulting firm McKinsey managing partner of South Africa Kannan Lakmeeharan believes swift action is needed to move from feasibility to investment decisions. Speaking to Engineering News on March 7 at a McKinsey-hosted event focusing on green hydrogen, which ran alongside the African Energy Indaba, in Cape Town, he said that derisking green hydrogen projects by securing some form of uptake was crucial.
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Creecy to decide this week on way forward for Kusile exemptions

The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) tells Engineering News that Minister Barbara Creecy has received a letter from Eskom requesting her to issue directions in terms of the disaster management regulations to exclude the construction of the temporary stacks at Kusile from environmental requirements. The state of disaster regulations issued on February 28, include Regulation 5(1)(i) which empowers Creecy to issue directions “excluding upgrades, refurbishments, adjustments and repairs of existing energy infrastructure and existing generation, transmission and distribution facilities” from environmental legislation.
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Karpowership appeal fails, deepening South Africa’s power crisis

Karpowership, the Turkish company seeking to supply 1 220 MW of electricity to South Africa, had one of three appeals against adverse environmental rulings rejected, a person with knowledge of the matter said, potentially delaying a solution to the country’s power crisis. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment rejected the appeal to moor a ship-mounted power plant capable of generating about 450 MW at the Coega harbor in the Eastern Cape province, the person said. Decisions on plants planned at the Saldanha and Richards Bay harbors have yet to be communicated to the company, the person said, asking not be identified because the government hasn’t made the information public.
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Mpact focuses on innovation, sustainability to tap growth and higher-value segments

JSE-listed paper and plastics packaging business and recycler Mpact’s product innovation, research and new production capacity is targeting sectors like export fruit, convenience shopping, recycling and waste management. The company is expecting to see sustained growth in these sectors, which are also partly shielded from South African consumer spending patterns.
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City of Cape Town highlights increase in cable theft arrests

A review of statistics over a seven-month period shows a considerable increase in cable theft arrests by the City of Cape Town’s Metal Theft Unit since November, the city says in a statement. The increase coincides with higher stages of loadshedding.
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African-made renewable energy products could benefit continent – SAIEE

Although Africa is going through an “unavoidable” energy transition, South African Institute of Electrical Engineers president Prince Moyo believes the continent can “leapfrog” the trajectory of Western nations if it finds ways of making renewable energy components on the continent.

Speaking at an Energy Day event organised by power systems developer Hitachi Energy Southern Africa on March 7, he said the future of electricity development was heading away from industrial users, and towards being more energy efficient and renewable energy information systems instead.

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Five substation sites specified in 513 MW battery storage tender

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has confirmed that five substation sites have been specified by Eskom for the public procurement of battery energy storage systems (BESS) with a combined capacity of 513 MW and a minimum of four hours of storage, or at least 2 052 MWh. A bid submission date of 17:00 on July 5 has been set and preferred bidders will be announced about two months thereafter. The projects are expected to be in operation 24 months after reaching commercial close.
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Important responsibility for new Minister of Electricity, but reshuffle questionable – …

There are some positives in the Cabinet reshuffle announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa, with some appointments having been welcomed by industry organisations; however, many were concerned by underperforming ministers being kept on and some reassigned, changes not being sufficiently decisive and the Cabinet size not being reduced. Importantly, Ramaphosa named a new Minister of Electricity, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, and while the role he will play has been emphasised by some, other organisations have questioned the need for the position at all.
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Eskom will miss target to boost power output from coal plants

State power utility Eskom will miss a target to boost output from struggling coal-fired plants by the end of March, highlighting the poor state of equipment whose viability is being reviewed by German energy consultants. Eskom Holdings, which is subjecting South Africa to its worst-ever electricity outages, told lawmakers in January it planned to increase production from six struggling facilities by 1,862 megawatts by the end of March. That would be enough to meet the needs of South Africa’s second-biggest city of Cape Town, where peak demand in winter is 1,800 megawatts.
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