EGA commissions solar panel plant in Paarl
Ener-G-Africa (EGA) has commissioned its Western Cape solar panel manufacturing facility in Paarl. The plant has a nameplate assembly capacity of up to 150 MW a year on a three-shift operation.
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NTCSA, IDC seek to catalyse localisation on back of big grid roll-out
The National Transmission Company South Africa (NTCSA) and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) have signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at unlocking industrial financing to NTCSA-verified suppliers and contractors involved in the expansion of South Africa’s electricity transmission network. In a joint statement, the two State-owned entities indicated that they would seek to use the funding to stimulate supplier development, localisation and industrialisation, with a particular focus on commodities such as transformers, insulators, hardware, transmission steel, conductors, and broader grid infrastructure construction.
Smart farming boosts efficiency, cuts energy use
A team of agricultural experts, part of industrial solutions provider BMG, will offer local farmers sustainability solutions focused on effective food production through its ‘Boer Slim’, or Smart Farming, initiative. BMG agricultural manager Carlo Beukes says the initiative assists farmers with cost-efficient solutions to improve crop output, enhance operational efficiency through reduced power consumption and minimise downtime through practical maintenance programmes.
Gaia concludes refinancing of empowerment agreements for the De Aar 1 and 2 wind farms
Cape Town Stock Exchange-listed renewable energy investment fund Gaia Renewables 1 has concluded agreements to refinance empowerment stakes in the 100.5 MW De Aar 1 and 144 MW De Aar 2 wind farms, in the Northern Cape. The R100-million transaction replaces existing high-cost debt used to fund empowerment ownership.
Shortlists of nuclear regulator board candidates released by Parliamentary Committee
Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Electricity and Energy has released the list of 26 candidates that it has shortlisted for interviews, to fill vacancies on the board of the National Nuclear Regulator (NNR). Four of these were candidates for the community representative and 22 were candidates for the labour representative. “The [NNR] is a regulatory authority established as a juristic person under Section 3 of the Nuclear Regulator Act, 1999,” explained the committee. “The NNR’s mandate is to regulate, monitor, and enforce safety standards to achieve safe operating conditions, prevent nuclear accidents, and mitigate the consequences of such accidents. This ensures the protection of workers, the public, property, and the environment against the potential harmful effects of ionizing radiation and radioactive materials.”
South Africa film sets ditch diesel in green energy shift
Solar panels are replacing diesel generators on some major film sets in South Africa, as streaming giants come under growing pressure to clean up one of the film industry’s dirtiest habits – its addiction to diesel generators. Netflix shot the second season of its hit show “One Piece” in Cape Town, its biggest production in Africa to date and the first to be filmed using a solar-powered base camp for off-grid electricity during a shoot.
Egypt aiming for massive expansion in solar power capacity over next decade
Egypt was opting big time for solar photovoltaic (PV) energy, to both expand and diversify its energy matrix, UK-based data analysis and intelligence company GlobalData has highlighted, in its most recent report, “Egypt Power Market Trends and Analysis by Capacity, Generation, Transmission, Distribution, Regulations, Key Players and Forecast to 2035”. The country was accelerating its deployment of solar PV power, from a total capacity of some 2.9 GW last year to a target of 34.3 GW by 2035. …
Dimsum Energy, Goldwind Africa partner to develop Eastern Cape renewables pipeline
Independent renewable energy developer Dimsum Energy has entered into a strategic partnership with global renewable energy company Goldwind Africa to develop Energy Fields, a large-scale portfolio of renewable energy projects in the Esstern Cape, targeting more than 2 GW of wind, solar and battery storage capacity. Through this partnership, the parties intend to develop and build utility-scale wind and solar projects in high-resource areas of the Eastern Cape, integrate battery energy storage systems to enhance grid stability and dispachability, support corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs) for industrial users and strengthen local supply chains and skills development.
Ramokgopa welcomes inauguration of Envusa’s R15bn Koruson 2 cluster of renewables projects
Envusa Energy – a joint venture between diversified miner Anglo American and EDF Renewables – has inaugurated its flagship 520 MW Koruson 2 (K2) cluster of renewable energy projects in the Eastern Cape. Electricity and Energy Minister Kgotsientsho Ramokgopa told attendees at the official inauguration ceremony on April 24 that this reflected government’s goal of growing private sector investment in the country.
Gas, fuel-focused funding to support economies amid Gulf crisis
In an effort to support African and Caribbean economies affected by the ongoing Middle East conflict, multilateral trade finance institution African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) reports that it will make available $10-billion under its Gulf Crisis Response Programme (GCRP). The bank states that the programme aims to limit economic shocks affecting countries that rely on fuel, liquefied natural gas (LNG), fertilisers and food imports from the Gulf region. It does this by providing short-term foreign exchange and liquidity support to member States.
