Growth target of 3% set for 2025 as business and government relaunch partnership under GNU

A second phase of the partnership launched between government and business to tackle South Africa’s electricity, logistics and crime crises has been launched under the Government of National Unity (GNU), with an immediate goal of raising growth to over 3% from 2025. Speaking at the launch in Johannesburg, President Cyril Ramaphosa described growth as the “glue” that held the GNU parties together, while urging business to work with government to take advantage of the “window of opportunity” opened by the May 29 election results to aim for even higher levels of growth in future.
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Nersa committee recommends licensing of four more traders, batting away Eskom objections

The electricity subcommittee of the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has recommended the approval of four more electricity trading licences, dismissing the objections raised by Eskom’s distribution division during hearings in July. The recommendation that GreenCo Power Services, Discovery Green, Green Electron Market and CBI Electric Apollo receive national trading licences will now be taken to the Energy Regulator, Nersa’s highest decision-making body, for approval.
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Caledonia sells Zimbabwe solar plant

Gold miner Caledonia Mining Corporation has entered into a conditional agreement to sell the entire issued share capital of its Zimbabwe subsidiary Caledonia Mining Services (CMS), which owns and operates the 12.2 MW solar plant that supplies power to its Blanket mine, to CrossBoundary Energy (CBE) for $22.35-million in cash. The electricity generated by the solar plant will continue to be sold to the Blanket mine under an exclusive power purchase agreement.
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Ramakgopa confident he can head off Eskom’s ‘untenable’ tariff hike with policy adjustments

Electricity and Energy Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramakgopa is confident that State-owned utility Eskom’s proposed tariff increase for direct customers of 36.15%, and a 43.55% hike in municipal tariffs, will not come to pass. On September 24, Engineering News reported that the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) had formally published Eskom’s highly controversial price allowable revenue application for the coming three years. Nersa will, in the coming months, hold public hearings on the proposed increases before making a final determination.
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Banda appointed CEO of ENERTRAG South Africa

German renewable-energy company ENERTRAG has appointment Enos Banda as the new CEO of South African operations. A lawyer by training, Banda is a well-known personality in the South African energy sector having previously headed Eskom Enterprises, chaired South Africa’s energy regulator in the 1990s, and having been a senior executive or board member of both listed and unlisted companies.
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