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Siemens Energy extolls benefits of solar thermal energy and storage solution

Energy development company Siemens Energy on April 6 highlighted the benefits of its new solar thermal energy and storage solution, highlighting the potential it could have to “revolutionise” the way in which energy is produced and used to power society. Outlining the innovation, Siemens Energy project director Dr Ulrich Hueck said solar power exceeds all other energy reserves; therefore, there needs to be a means to make use of it at night, with it having the potential to power the world during the day.
April 6, 2023 by

Anuva Green Energy adds 23 solar projects to its Section 12B portfolio

Tax-leveraged investment specialist Anuva Investments has successfully deployed funds raised through the Anuva Green Energy partnership to conclude the purchase of 23 solar projects, equivalent to 11 MW of power from independent power producer Decentral Energy. The funds have been raised through a tax-leveraged structure and have allowed shareholders to benefit from the investment into Decentral’s solar projects by making use of the South African Revenue Services’ (Sars’) Section 12B tax incentive.
April 6, 2023 by

Coal life-extensions set to be included in options being prepared by Ramokgopa for Cabinet …

The Minister in the Presidency responsible for Electricity, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, intends presenting Cabinet with a list of options before the end of April that he says will outline ways to accelerate efforts to tackle growth- and confidence sapping loadshedding. If adopted these could result in changes to the timelines outlined in the Energy Action Plan (EAP), which has been widely consulted with stakeholders and which the Minister has been appointed to implement.
April 6, 2023 by

Swedish energy storage company plans 100% capacity increase for its Cape Town plant

Polarium South Africa, the local subsidiary of Swedish energy storage group Polarium, plans to double the capacity of its Cape Town assembly plant by the end of this year. This was reported at a media briefing on Wednesday. The plant only started production last April and is the result of a $30-million investment in South Africa. The Polarium group has a policy of placing its plants in strategically chosen locations in its various market regions, to minimize transport costs and to minimize carbon emissions. Apart from Sweden and South Africa, it also has plants in Mexico and Vietnam. The South African plant has already assembled some 15 000 lithium-ion batteries, for energy storage applications across Africa.
April 5, 2023 by

Outa, others welcome termination of State of Disaster for electricity

The government has terminated, with immediate effect, the National State of Disaster declared by the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs on February 9. In a statement, the Department of Cooperative Government and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) says the State of Disaster was a necessary response to the impact of critical levels of load shedding on the economy and vulnerable sectors such as health and small businesses.
April 5, 2023 by

Controversial Eskom exemption withdrawn ‘for now’

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana told MPs on Wednesday that he has decided to withdraw the exemption of Eskom from the Public Finance Management Act “for now” to have further consultation with the auditor-general and Eskom’s auditors.  A special government gazette issued by Godongwana on Friday exempted Eskom from reporting in its annual financial statements on wasteful and irregular expenditure that did not arise from corruption.
April 5, 2023 by

2023 Energy Investment Village open for pitches

The Green Energy Africa Summit (GEAS) has announced the launch of the 2023 Energy Investment Village (EIV), a deal-pitching event for African clean-tech starts-ups and energy projects. The EIV is now open for entries from emerging African energy businesses and will culminate in a Lion’s Den-type pitching event during the GEAS to be held in Cape Town on October 11.
April 4, 2023 by

Treasury assures transparency, accountability not compromised with Eskom’s financial exemption

Following backlash after a special government gazette was issued by Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana on Friday, which revealed that Eskom would be exempt from declaring its irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure, Treasury has asserted that transparency and accountability are not compromised with the move. Godongwana has granted a partial exemption to the ailing power utility from disclosing irregular spending in its annual financial statements, for three years.
April 4, 2023 by

Absa to offer its SME clients grants to help them fund solar energy installations

South African banking and investment services group Absa has announced that it is making R50-million available to provide solar energy grants to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that are its clients. More specifically, the grants will be offered to SMEs whose commercial properties are financed by the bank. “SMEs make a significant contribution to job creation and economic growth in South Africa,” pointed out Absa Relationship Banking SME Business managing executive Ronnie Mbatsane. “However, in many instances, the operating environment over the past few years has made it very difficult for these vital enablers to grow and thrive.”
April 3, 2023 by