Facility to address energy inefficiencies

The formation of the African Energy Efficiency Facility (AEEF), a legacy project of South Africa’s G20 presidency, was announced earlier this month by Electricity and Energy Deputy Minister Samantha Graham-Maré at the opening of the G20 Energy Transitions Working Group side event. The AEEF framework has been developed by the Department of Electricity and Energy and the African Energy Commission – a specialised agency of the African Union (AU) –in collaboration with the UN Environment United for Efficiency Programme. The framework also supports a continental market shift to producing higher-efficiency lighting products and appliances.
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Constant investment maintains beneficial partnership

Having made significant investments in its distribution, engineering facilities and technical skills, industrial solutions provider BMG’s dedicated variable-speed drive (VSD) workshops in Cape Town, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal remain the approved warranty centres for renowned brands – including Danfoss, VACON and Synergy – in South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. BMG’s range of Danfoss electronic, mechanical and intelligent ‘mechatronic’ devices are designed to optimise automation processes and reduce energy consumption.
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Transmission investment lacking in S Africa

South Africa’s transmission network, built for a centralised, coal-based power system, cannot carry the country into a decentralised, renewables-led future, says financial solutions provider Old Mutual Alternative Investments infrastructure debt head Rolf Canto and investment analyst Kabelo Mabaso. In a paper titled ‘Why transmission investment is the missing piece in South Africa’s energy transition’, they stress this, saying South Africa has outgrown its grid.
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Kariba’s rehabilitation lays foundation for another 50 years of hydropower delivery

After several delays since its launch in 2017, the $294-million Kariba Dam Rehabilitation Project (KDRP), aimed at repairing decades of erosion from high-velocity water discharge and refurbishing the dam’s spillway, is now largely complete, with remaining works due to wrap up by September next year. The project’s core components are the reshaping of the dam’s plunge pool, completed in September last year, and the refurbishment of all six sluices in the spillway, the first phase of which is now 99% complete, with finalisation expected before year-end. Phase II, which began in 2024, has progressed to the 26% completion mark, with overall works scheduled to conclude in just under a year.
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