South Africa to provide new coal-plant closure timeline to secure secure $2.6bn

South Africa will provide a new timeline for the shutdown of coal-fired power plants in a bid to secure about $2.5-billion in climate finance, an agency in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office said. The timetable to be proposed to the Climate Investment Funds in June aims to ensure the country remains on track to obtain funding under the so-called Just Energy Transition Partnership — a $9.3-billion pact with some of the world’s richest nations. Under the agreement, first announced in 2021, South Africa will receive the assistance on condition it cuts its dependence on coal, which accounts for four-fifths of the nation’s electricity output. Early last year, South Africa told its partners in the pact it planned to delay the planned shutdown of coal-fired plants — 14 of which are operated by state utility Eskom — to address record electricity outages. The authorities didn’t set new closure dates. “What we are presenting to the CIF is an adjustment to the decommissioning plan linked to an emissions target that we have to achieve,” said Neil Cole, a finance manager at the Project Management Unit, which is overseeing the JETP for South Africa, within the presidency.
/by

Renewables provided record 30% of global electricity in 2023, Ember says

Growth in solar and wind power pushed renewable generation to a record 30% of global electricity production in 2023, putting a global target to triple renewable capacity by 2030 within sight, a report by think tank Ember said. Cutting fossil fuel use and emissions in the power sector is seen as vital to meeting global climate targets. More than 100 countries at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai last year agreed to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030.
/by

South African company comes second in Milken-Motsepe Prize in Green Energy competition

The Milken Institute and the Motsepe Foundation have announced Aftrak and Omnivat as winners of the Milken-Motsepe Prize in Green Energy – a $2-million innovation competition to reward entrepreneurs working to expand access to reliable, affordable and sustainable offgrid electricity in Africa. Aftrak, an initiative based out of the UK and Malawi, was awarded the $1-million grand prize for its easily assembled solar microgrid and custom-designed tractors, which have tripled agricultural yield, increased farmer incomes and provided electricity to remote communities.
/by

NamPower grid-strengthening and battery storage project secures $138.5m World Bank backing

The World Bank has approved a $138.5-million finance package to support the integration of renewable energy into Namibia’s electricity system by strengthening its transmission grid and integrating a second utility scale battery storage system into the country’s network. The initiative, which is Namibia’s first-ever World Bank financed energy project, will be implemented by NamPower, with the aim of minimising outage risks, supporting load growth, and unlocking future opportunities for power trade in the Southern African Power Pool.
/by

Eskom takes City Power to court over R1bn debt

State power utility Eskom has said it has “no choice” but to approach the Johannesburg High Court to force City Power to pay just over R1-billion in unpaid debt. Eskom noted that City Power began to default on payments in October 2023 and that it did not receive any payment for March, this year.
/by

Ramokgopa insists loadshedding not being ‘stage managed’ ahead of May 29 poll

Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa denies that the prevailing reprieve from loadshedding has been “stage managed” to improve the prospects of the governing African National Congress ahead of the May 29 poll, attributing it instead to “orchestrated” engineering efforts undertaken by Eskom over the past 18 months. Speaking during a briefing that coincided with the fortieth consecutive day of no loadshedding and amid growing societal cynicism about the timing of such supply stability, the Minister also strenuously denied that the improved performance was because Eskom was relying more heavily on the diesel-fuelled open cycle gas turbines that it owned as well as those operated by independent power producers (IPPs).
/by

Climate commission model points to the growth potential of green industrialisation

The initial direct cost of placing South Africa on an energy transition pathway over the coming five years in line with its decarbonisation targets is calculated at a hefty R1.5-trillion in the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET-IP). Less visible, however, are the socioeconomic costs associated with failing to pursue the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) goal of reducing carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2-eq) emissions to the lower end of the NDC range of between 420-million and 350-million CO2-eq tons in 2030.
/by

Wind energy critical to bolster energy capacity – SAWEA

Despite recent efforts to bolster electricity generation capacity, the path to energy security remains full of obstacles. The integration of renewable energy, particularly wind power, is critical to these efforts, says the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA).
/by

The lights are on in South Africa and many people are suspicious

South Africa is enjoying a rare streak of uninterrupted electricity right before elections, drawing more suspicion than praise in a nation that’s become accustomed to the daily power cuts that have dragged on for years. The country is currently in its fourth successive week of no outages — the longest period South Africans have consistently had electricity supply in more than two years.
/by

WBHO completes two solar plants, impactful community initiatives in Lichtenburg

Construction group Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon (WBHO) and renewable energy company Sola Group have completed construction of the Merak 2 & 3 solar photovoltaic projects near Lichtenburg, in North West.

The two solar plants, with capacities of 130 MW and 126 MW, respectively, span an area of 4 km2 and will deliver power through a wheeling agreement to mineral sands miner Tronox.

/by