The removal of the licensing threshold for embedded generation has boosted the renewable-energy market by allowing private-sector companies to procure energy directly from independent power producers (IPPs) and thereby facilitating greater investment across the renewable-energy landscape, says financial services company Nedbank Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB). The company highlights that it will continue to scale up its historical commitment towards the renewable-energy sector, in line with the need to support socioeconomic development objectives while driving the transition to a zero-carbon energy system, thereby also advancing energy security and affordability.
In South Africa, solar and wind are viable and established energy sources, notes digital automation and energy management company Schneider Electric. Unfortunately, it is limited to when the sun is shining, and the wind is blowing, which is why energy storage forms such an important part of the energy generation infrastructure. In exploring the variability of solar in the US state of California, energy producers have observed a trend now referred to as the “Duck Curve”. In essence, the Duck Curve observes a drop in net load (or the demand remaining after subtracting variable renewable generation) in the middle of the day, when solar generation tends to be highest.
South Africa’s disproportionate reliance on coal for electricity generation is poised to add further upward pressure on tariffs by exposing local businesses to carbon taxes that could make up over 35% of their electricity costs by 2034. This finding is contained in research conducted by Discovery Green in partnership with EY’s Africa Sustainability Tax division, which Discovery Green head Andre Nepgen says points to there being significant cost implications for those South African businesses subject to carbon tax.
Despite welcome relief from loadshedding in South Africa, a total of 3.3 GW of renewable energy projects were registered with the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) this year, with more than 2 GW registered in the third quarter alone. Analysis conducted by Gaylor Montmasson-Clair, senior economist at Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies, indicates that the surge in registrations during the quarter, from 606 MW in the first quarter and 732 MW in the second, could be attributed to a few large projects.
As electricity in South Africa transitions to a more open market-driven system, it has many implications for the electricity distribution industry, particularly municipalities, with stakeholders working on a reform roadmap for the distribution industry to ensure municipalities remain financially sustainable. National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) electricity regulation interim executive manager Welile Mkhize noted during an address at the Association of Municipal Electricity Utilities convention on October 21, that many metropolitans and municipalities were facing volumetric risk with electricity revenues given the current structure of their tariffs.
State-owned utility Eskom has urged prepaid electricity customers to recode their meters by November 24, as required by the Standard Transfer Specification Association. After this deadline, meters will no longer accept electricity tokens unless they are updated to Key Revision Number 2.
The South African government is considering far-reaching changes to the way public procurement of independent power producer (IPP) generation capacity is being carried out so as to accelerate deployments in a way that navigates the country’s prevailing grid constraints, while also creating the certainty needed to support green industrialisation. The changes were considered necessary to facilitate the procurement of some 10 GW of additional renewables capacity covered by the Ministerial determinations issue to enable procurement, including capacity available for re-allocation from previous bidding rounds where projects were either not selected or did not advance to construction.
South Africa has the potential to be the strongest producer, user and exporter of coal on the continent, but political interference prevents this from happening, XMP Consulting senior coal analyst Xavier Prevost has said. “We are actually not fulfilling our role the way we should and the reason why is simply because we are blocked by politicians that think they’re doing what’s best, but they’re not,” he told delegates at nonprofit organisation FFF Carbon’s 2024 Middelburg Coal Conference, in Mpumalanga, on October 17.
Renewable-energy group Scatec says it is making final preparations to start construction of the R3-billion Mogobe battery energy storage system (BESS) project, which reached financial close on October 16. The 103 MW/412 MWh project is located near Kathu, in the Northern Cape, and has been awarded a 15-year power purchase agreement under South Africa’s inaugural Battery Energy Storage Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme bid window.
Transitioning to wind and solar is probably one of the greatest mistakes that humanity has ever made, German commodity trading company HMS Bergbau president Dr Lars Schernikau said at nonprofit organisation FFF Carbon’s 2024 Middelburg Coal Conference in Mpumalanga, on October 17. “It’s a very uncomfortable and unpopular thing to say,” he admitted, highlighting numerous often ignored challenges posed by the ongoing energy transition.
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