AMSA to convert one Vanderbijlpark blast furnace to an electronic arc furnace by 2028

Steelmaker ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) CEO Kobus Verster has confirmed that the company will be converting one of its three blast furnaces into an electronic arc furnace (EAF) within the next four years. The company currently has two blast furnaces in operation at its Vanderbijlpark facility. However, since one of these is due for a refurbishment and relining in 2029, the decision has been made take the opportunity to rather convert it to an EAF, as the latter produces fewer emissions.
/by

AMSA expects to break ground on 200 MW Vanderbijlpark’s solar plant this year

Steelmaker ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) is planning to start construction on a 200 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant at its Vanderbijlpark facility, in Gauteng, towards the end of the year, CEO Kobus Verster has told Engineering News. He explained that the installation would serve as one of AMSA’s first steps towards decarbonising the company’s energy requirements.
/by

Motsepe-backed GoSolr plans $537m South Africa expansion

GoSolr, a company backed by South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe and the continent’s biggest bank, plans to spend R10 billion to roll out a model of renting solar panels and batteries to homes in the nation plagued by blackouts. The two-and-a-half-year-old company seeks to install about 500 megawatts of solar-generation capacity in four years. That’s up from its current 70 megawatts, said Andrew Middleton, GoSolr’s chief executive officer. It has attracted investment and financing from Motsepe’s African Rainbow Capital Investments and Standard Bank Group.
/by

Two BW6 solar projects with a combined capacity of 360 MW reach commercial close

Two solar photovoltaic (PV) projects selected as preferred bids under Bid Window 6 (BW6) of the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s (DMRE’s) renewable energy procurement programme reached commercial close on April 30. The projects, which were part of a group of six PV projects to advance to preferred-bidder status for a 1 000 MW allocation in 2022, have a combined capacity of 360 MW and a combined investment value of R4.9-billion.
/by

City Power seeks funding, manufacturing partners for informal settlement ‘energy box’

Johannesburg’s City Power is seeking manufacturing and venture capital partners to further develop and pilot a rugged ‘energy box’ concept in one of the city’s 312 informal settlements as a possible greener and safer alternative to the illegal connections that currently predominate. Chief engineer for renewable energy Paul Vermeulen says the idea is to locate 3 kWh energy storage boxes – linked to lighting, charging and cooking appliances – within individual dwellings and link these to a centralised solar photovoltaic generator securely located on a nearby warehouse or factory rooftop.
/by

Cape Town targeting this year as starting date for turning waste into power

The City of Cape Town (CoCT) says it is moving closer to turning landfill waste into energy, with two projects that are designed to produce electricity from the combustion of landfill gas moving towards implementation. Landfill gas, primarily made up of methane, is produced when organic matter, such as food scraps, break down at landfill sites.
/by

Globeleq appoints Hoffman interim CEO

Independent power company Globeleq has appointed Jonathan Hoffman interim CEO, effective end-June.

He has been chief development officer of the company since 2020 and will be succeeding Mike Scholey as CEO once he steps down.

/by

Eskom warns political parties against placing posters on electrical structures

Ahead of the upcoming May 29 elections, State-owned power utility Eskom has cautioned all political parties against the “dangerous practice” of placing election posters on electrical structures. The utility said in the past there had been incidents of electrocution whilst posters were being put up, which it said contravened the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
/by

Draft Gas Master Plan released amid supply ‘cliff’ warnings

South Africa’s much-delayed draft Gas Master Plan (GMP2024) has been released for public comment by Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe, amid indications that the gap between demand and supply will grow steeply from 2026 onwards when Sasol ceases to supply Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal industrial customers with gas imported from Mozambique. The document includes four scenarios, including a base case that shows that gas demand will far exceed supply in the short term and that the gap, which has been described as an anticipated ‘gas cliff’, will worsen as demand grows.
/by

Without rooftop solar investments, loadshedding would be worse, study shows

Amid the energy challenges facing South Africa, residential solar energy company GoSolr says radical steps must be taken to secure the country’s energy supply and notes that solar energy will have a key role to play in ensuring security of supply.

In its inaugural quarterly solar update, or Light Paper, the company points out that South Africa experienced 68 days of loadshedding in the first quarter of this year.

/by