Standard Bank backs 500-MW-worth of decentralised electricity projects post reforms

Standard Bank reports that it has provided funding to South African decentralised electricity projects with a combined capacity of more than 500 MW over the past two years, following regulatory changes allowing such projects to proceed without a licence. Operation Vulindela, which oversaw the regulatory reforms, reported that the pipeline of private renewables projects currently stood at 22 500 MW and that efforts were being made to remove the grid-related bottlenecks to unlocking further investment.
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Panellists have mixed views on sustainability of renewable-energy financing

Independent power producer (IPP) developers are currently generating lower returns on renewable-energy projects at about 11%, making it challenging for banks and institutions to provide finance, said Thebe Investment Corporation power and infrastructure GM Johann Bester. He introduced this problem statement to a panel of experts during the Coal & Energy Transition Industry Day on July 23, adding that some banks are not participating in Bid Window 7 of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme because the returns are simply too low.
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Port of Richards Bay moves to diversify beyond bulk exports while bolstering climate resilience

The Port of Richards Bay, in KwaZulu-Natal, is progressing with planning for infrastructure and terminal investments aimed at consolidating its position as a bulk export hub for key minerals such as coal and chrome, while also diversifying its activities to include more containers, as well as the importation and storage of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquid fuels. The developments are included in a masterplan and the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) estimates that investments of more than R30-billion will be required over the coming ten years to open up new berths, as well as to facilitate the relocation of the South African Navy from the Port of Durban to the Port of Richards Bay.
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TFR boasts slight improvement but admits much work still to be done

Although there has been a “slight” improvement year-on-year in terms of State-owned Transnet Freight Rail’s (TFR’s) North Corridor performance, the beleaguered rail operator is “not out of the woods yet”, TFR north corridor acting managing executive Theo Johnson has said. “‘Slight improvement’ is a term that I would accept. We’re working on a lot of initiatives [in] the North Corridor, because that’s the biggest corridor in TFR, particularly for the export coal line . . . but we are not out of the woods. We have a long way to go,” he said at the 2024 Coal & Energy Transition Day, in Johannesburg, on July 24.
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