IPP shares project development insights after 15 yrs in sector

South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) and the growth of its commercial and industrial renewable energy space is a good blueprint for the development of projects in the rest of Africa. “There are phenomenal opportunities for growth in the African market. There are many areas in sub-Saharan Africa that lack access to electricity and present a substantial opportunity for renewable energy to fill that void,” says independent power producer (IPP) Pele Green Energy (PGE) senior project developer Anesu Gwata.   
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World Bank’s Banga doubles down on intent to end ban loans for nuclear power projects

World Bank president Ajay Banga on Wednesday doubled down on his push to revamp the bank’s energy strategy to end a ban on lending for nuclear power projects and enable more natural gas projects, saying he will seek executive board approval in June. The changes would mark a shift from the bank’s focus only on renewable energy projects, save for consideration for some gas projects in the poorest countries.
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Opinion: The superpower driving the future of low-carbon electricity

In this opinion article, Sola Group executive director Dom Wills discusses how the modularity that has underpinned the rapid growth of solar PV, is also driving the sharp fall in battery costs. He argues that if this rapid progress continues, the cheapest, fastest growing form of clean electricity will gain the valuable ability to reshape itself and follow the electrical load.
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Eskom seeks partner for renewables unit

Engineering News editor Terence Creamer discusses power utility Eskom’s plans to set up a new renewable energy business and the tender it has issued to find a partner for the venture.
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Keren Energy on the hunt for customers for its Western Cape green hydrogen project

Keren Energy has made significant progress in the development of its green hydrogen (GH2) production facility near Vanrhynsdorp, in the Western Cape, says CEO George van Rensburg. The project aims to support South Africa’s transition to a low-carbon economy by focusing on small-scale, distributed hydrogen production, tailored for the local industrial, manufacturing, mobility and commercial sectors.
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Exxaro views collaboration with Eskom as key to lowering of Scope 3 emissions

JSE-listed coal and energy group Exxaro Resources and State-owned electricity producer Eskom have announced they will collaborate on research initiatives and projects to reduce carbon emissions and cut air pollution. The two entities, which both have net-zero by 2050 targets, formalised their collaboration through a memorandum of understanding (MoU), signed on April 14.
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Marokane says Eskom must be given ‘space’ to pursue renewables strategy

Eskom CEO Dan Marokane has appealed for the State-owned utility to be given “space” to implement its renewable-energy strategy, insisting that it is not designed to “crowd out” private competitors and is in line with the country’s Just Energy Transition strategy of protecting vulnerable coal workers and communities. Speaking during the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Exxaro aimed primarily at helping to support the coal miner to reduce its Scope 3, or indirect, carbon emissions, Marokane also stressed the utility’s renewables strategy would be pursued in partnership with the private sector.
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South Africa moves closer to traded power market, top bank says

South Africa is on the cusp of starting a traded electricity market that will give consumers a choice of power products along with a range of pricing options, according to a top investment bank. Africa’s most industrialised economy has relied on state-owned Eskom for the bulk of its electricity supply for more than a century. Mismanagement and underinvestment at the utility led to record outages in 2023, causing government to allow private companies to build power plants of any size to meet their own needs and to sell to the grid.
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Aspirant IPP advancing 1 GW flexible gas-engine project in Mpumalanga

Aspirant independent power producer (IPP) FlexED is developing a 1 000 MW gas-engine project in Mpumalanga to provide the flexible generation and ancillary services that will be required as the share of variable renewable-energy generation in South Africa’s electricity system rises. Known as Khanyazwe Flexpower, the project is being developed near Malalane, in Mpumalanga, in close proximity to the National Transmission Company South Africa’s (NTCSA’s) Khanyazwe substation and with confirmed access to the Rompco gas pipeline from Mozambique to South Africa.
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Advanced protection for hazardous electrical environments

Critical for use near utilities’ generators and substations as well as industrial electrical panels and switch rooms, Dromex arc workwear forms an important part of industrial equipment and services supplier BMG’s tool and equipment division’s comprehensive personal protective equipment (PPE) range. BMG tools and equipment division business unit manager Andrew Johns advises customers to ensure that chosen workwear and PPE offers adequate protection for specific applications as every environment poses different safety challenges; correct product selection is crucial.
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