IPP Office head says stakeholder alignment key to regular, investment-promoting procurement rhythm

The head of South Africa’s Independent Power Producer (IPP) Office believes that improved stakeholder management and alignment are key to overcoming delays to the introduction of urgently required new electricity capacity and to creating the predictable “procurement rhythm” required to attract electricity and manufacturing investment. In a wide-ranging interview Bernard Magoro tells Engineering News that all stakeholders, including multiple government departments, the regulator, Eskom and the bidders, need to “come to the party” to overcome the current impediments to projects achieving financial close.
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Emissions reduction tech at Kusile contributes to move to Stage 4 load-shedding

State-owned utility Eskom was forced to implement Stage 4 load-shedding on the evening of May 16 after Unit 2 at the Kusile power station tripped, Eskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha said. The tripped Kusile unit removed 720 MW of generating capacity from the already constrained grid.
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Load-shedding escalated to Stage 4 on Monday

Load-shedding will be escalated to Stage 4 on Monday afternoon, Eskom announced. This is owing to a unit at Kusile power station tripping earlier on Monday, taking 720MW of generating capacity with it, Eskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha said.  “While this unit has since returned to service, it will slowly load up to full capacity during the night.” 
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BLSA suggests business plan for an incoming modernised electricity system

South Africa will eventually find itself with a thoroughly modern electricity supply sector, including many generators competing with each other, an effective distribution operator and a wide marketplace for consumers to buy electricity.

Businesses should see through the doom and gloom of the current electricity mess and plan for the brighter future on the horizon, Business Leadership South Africa CEO Busi Mavuso suggests in her latest weekly newsletter, while also asking whether business is ready for an electricity system that works.

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Godongwana says work under way to unblock R54bn embedded generation pipeline

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana reports that work is under way with the private sector to unblock the remaining obstacles to investment of about R54-billion in embedded generation projects. Speaking during a presentation of Operation Vulindlela’s first quarter progress report, Godongwana said he was aware of frustrations over the slow pace of the structural reforms being championed under the initiative, including those designed to address the electricity crisis.
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Newly rebranded DFI launches in Kenya

The newly rebranded UK government’s development finance institution (DFI) British International Investment (BII) was launched on May 12 at the British High Commissioner’s residence in Nairobi, Kenya – one of the DFI’s most important markets. The event was attended by BII CEO Nick O’Donohoe and British High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Marriott.
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South Africa must cut red tape to close energy gap, ANC suggests

South Africa must accelerate plans to generate more electricity itself, buy more energy from private producers and make it easier for power-hungry mining companies to build their own plants, according to a draft economic policy document compiled by the nation’s governing party. Projects outlined in the government’s Integrated Resources Plan won’t be sufficient to end rolling blackouts, and the energy blueprint should be reviewed, the African National Congress said in the document seen by Bloomberg. It called for privately built plants to be designated as strategic infrastructure projects, which would make it easier for them to get environmental approval, and for registration requirements to be streamlined.
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South African coal consumers face tough decisions as miners prioritise exports over domestic …

A potential food crisis may be brewing in South Africa as domestic coal consumers face increasing difficulty in securing coal supplies at a fair price to fire their processing plants, says commodity insights and marketplace company African Source Markets CEO Bevan Jones.

He tells Mining Weekly that, currently, South African producers of high-quality coal are increasingly neglecting the domestic industrial sector as a result of high US Dollar export coal prices.

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Relaxation of PFMA rules empowers Eskom to engage directly with OEMs, maintenance suppliers

State-owned utility Eskom says the National Treasury’s relaxation of some procurement and supply chain management rules and processes contained in the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) will assist it in speeding up critical and urgent procurement. The amendment, which is outlined in an instruction note that became effective in April,  will also empower it to engage directly with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and maintenance suppliers.
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Stage 2 load-shedding on Friday night as over 16 000 MW lost to breakdowns

Stage 2 load-shedding will be implemented for the fifth time this week, running from 17:00 to 22:00 on Friday, Eskom said in a statement. Several generating units are expected to return to service starting on Friday afternoon and through the weekend, however.
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