Eskom Group CEO Dan Marokane has outlined an “aspirational” and largely unfunded new generation project pipeline to progressively replace its aged and polluting coal fleet. Having previously declared that Eskom had a 22 GW project portfolio, Marokane told members of the Portfolio Committee on Electricity and Energy that the generation division, which is yet to be unbundled, was “working on a pipeline of new clean energy to ensure security of supply in the long term”.
South Africa’s High Court upheld a legal challenge to the government’s plan to procure 1 500 megawatts of new coal-fired power, ruling that it was unlawful because of the potential impact on public health. Plans for more electricity from the dirtiest fossil fuel in South Africa, which has the most carbon-intensive economy among the Group of 20 nations, violate the constitutional right to health, Judge C.J. van der Westhuizen wrote in a ruling released on Wednesday.
The National Transmission Company South Africa (NTCSA) has told lawmakers that a “step change” will be needed in the delivery of new grid infrastructure if 14 500 km of new powerlines and 133 000 MVA of additional transformers are to be added to the grid by 2034. However, government and NTCSA were still investigating possible private-sector participation as a “potential alternative delivery mechanism”. This, in addition to its traditional engineer, procure and construction management approach, as well as through the more recently adopted engineer, procurement and construction (EPC) contracting model.