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Two more battery projects achieve financial close, next set of bidders to be announced within weeks

Two more battery storage projects selected as preferred bids under South Africa’s first public procurement bid window (BW1) for the technology have achieved commercial close. The projects have a combined investment value of R4.7-billion and increase to 360 MW/1 440 MWh the amount of utility-scale storage capacity to have reached the milestone after two other projects reached financial close in mid-October.
November 19, 2024 by

Zambia, Zimbabwe face wake-up call after Kariba dam water levels plunge, Minister says

A plunge in water levels at the world’s largest man-made reservoir, which has left Zambia and Zimbabwe without power for hours, shows why they need to diversify their energy sources, according to a top official. “The over-dependence on hydropower has exposed the vulnerability of the energy mix,” Zambia’s Energy Minister Makozo Chikote said. “This has been a wake-up call that has taught us to start thinking of alternative sources,” he said at an energy summit Monday held in the resort city of Victoria Falls.
November 19, 2024 by

Eskom once again urges prepaid metered customers to recode their meters before Nov 24

State-owned power utility Eskom is once again urging all prepaid electricity customers to update their meters immediately to avoid an unexpected loss of electricity after the deadline of November 24. It is critical that all customers, including those who have not bought electricity in the past six months or more, to buy electricity tokens from authorised vendors by November 24 to prevent the meter from becoming inoperable, losing power and incurring replacement costs, says Eskom Distribution group executive Monde Bala.
November 19, 2024 by

Affordability and Eskom inefficiencies come under scrutiny as Nersa hearings kick off

The issues of electricity affordability and Eskom’s inefficiencies emerged as recurring themes as the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) kicked off nationwide public hearings in Cape Town on Monday into the utility’s latest revenue application. Through its sixth multiyear price determination (MYPD6) submission, Eskom is requesting an increase in its allowable revenue to R446-billion in 2025/26, R495-billion in 2026/27 and R536-billion in 2027/28.
November 18, 2024 by

SAPVIA calls for incentives for SSEG market

Industry organisation the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA) has made a presentation to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Electricity and Energy in which it called for solar investment incentives that offer tax benefits and grants for installations, specifically targeting middle-income households. “We believe a national small-scale embedded generation (SSEG) framework will help standardise system registration and compliance across municipalities,” said SAPVIA CEO Dr Rethabile Melamu.
November 15, 2024 by

IBM, Sustainable Energy for All launch new energy, urban development solutions

Technology company IBM and international organisation Sustainable Energy for All have announced new, publicly available AI-powered solutions to enable decision-makers and policymakers to map urbanisation and identify energy and infrastructure needs for communities in developing regions. The announcement took place at the twenty-ninth UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties, which is being held this week in Azerbaijan.
November 15, 2024 by

Ramokgopa to recommend lifting PBMR from care and maintenance

The Department of Electricity and Energy is preparing a report to Cabinet to recommend the approval of lifting the pebble bed modular reactor (PBMR) from care and maintenance to allow South Africa to revive the development of its PBMR capability. “Nuclear is the future and is alive in South Africa. It will play a significant role in the industrialisation and localisation of massive infrastructure development to stimulate economic growth and create high-technology jobs,” Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has said.
November 15, 2024 by

AFD approves another €400m JET-linked policy loan to South Africa

Agence Française de Développement (AFD) has approved another €400-million policy-based loan to support South Africa’s Just Energy Transition (JET), increasing its approvals to €700-million out of the €1-billion it pledged to South Africa at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021. The loan is described as the largest-ever on the AFD’s balance sheet and is said to build on the €300-million public policy loan provided by AFD in 2022.
November 14, 2024 by

IPP Office confirms ongoing dispute with 13 projects over payment of bid bonds

The head of South Africa’s Independent Power Producer Office (IPPO) has confirmed that it has called the bid bonds for 14 projects that failed to advance to commercial close during the fifth bid window (BW5) of the country’s renewables procurement programme. Bernard Magoro told lawmakers this week that one preferred bidder had agreed to pay the bid bond, but that the other 13 were still the subject of a legal dispute.
November 14, 2024 by