Author Archive for: Engineering News

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has approved far-reaching changes to the way electricity tariffs will be set in future, but it could still take some time before the rules are fully implemented. Nersa approved the new Electricity Price Determination Rules (EPDR) on December 14, following a consultation phase, which was initiated in 2021 to find an alternative to the current multiyear price determination (MYPD) framework that has been used to set Eskom tariffs since 2006.

Energy Council CEO James Mackay has welcomed the decision of the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy to extend the comment period for the draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2023 by a month and has also called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to use his State of the Nation Address (SoNA) emphasise government’s commitment to “open and robust debate on national energy policy”. Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe used his Mining Indaba address on February 6 to announce that the IRP comment period had been extended to March 23 from February 23 to “allow maximum participation in this process”. However, he refrained from initiating public hearings, which some commentators have called for given serious concerns over the assumptions and modelling used to produce the draft document.

Business organisation Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) CEO Busi Mavuso has urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to show a clear commitment to the hard work of reform implementation during his State of the Nation Address (SoNA) on Thursday evening. South Africa’s electricity crisis remains a significant constraint, despite some progress having been made, and its logistics system has rapidly become a disaster for the economy, requiring urgent intervention, Mavuso said in her latest weekly newsletter on February 5.

The South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) is urging the energy community to critically analyse the revised draft Integrated Resource Plan 2023 (IRP 2023) to provide constructive inputs that will improve the country’s energy future. SAWEA says it appreciates the information sessions hosted by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) to delve deeper into the plan and its underlying assumptions, which have provided much-needed context and additional information, ensuring a common understanding across various interpretations.

Mozambique plans to end half a century of hydropower supply to South Africa’s State-owned electricity utility, raising risks for the continent’s most industrialized economy and threatening the viability of Africa’s second-biggest aluminum smelter. In the country’s yet-to-be published energy transition strategy, a copy of which Bloomberg has seen, Mozambique details the plan to secure the 1,150 megawatts of power it sells to South Africa from its Cahora Bassa plant for its own use.