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SANEDI develops new strategic plan to address modern energy issues

By: Donna Slater 23rd August 2021 Various challenges in the South African energy sector must be addressed for wider socioeconomic advancement – for which the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI) has developed a new strategic plan, positioning it to address key energy sector issues. SANEDI interim CEO... →

DMRE confirms 102 solar and wind bids as renewables procurement resumes

By: Terence Creamer 20th August 2021 The Independent Power Producer Office (IPPO) has released the project names and technologies bid in response to Bid Window 5 (BW5) of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), the bid deadline for which was August 16. The list released shows that 63 solar... →

Nersa signals intent to treat sub-100 MW registration as ‘administrative’ process

By: Terence Creamer 17th August 2021 The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) is still analysing the implications that a recent amendment to Schedule 2 of the Electricity Regulation Act, exempting grid-tied generation facilities below 100 MW from licensing, will have on its processes, rules and guidelines. However,... →

New renewable projects should be built in the Western Cape, North West, Free State or Limpopo - Scatec

By: Schalk Burger 13th August 2021 The recent Generation Connection Capacity Assessment (GCCA) report published by State-owned power utility Eskom shows there is limited available capacity for renewable energy capacity to be connected to the Northern Cape grid, says renewable independent power producer Scatec sub-Saharan Africa GM... →

Eskom, W Cape govt welcome amendments giving effect to 100 MW reform

By: Donna Slater 13th August 2021 The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s (DMRE’s) August 12 Gazetting of its amendment to Section 2 of the Electricity Regulation Act has been welcomed by State-owned power utility Eskom and the Western Cape provincial government. The amendment permits private electricity generators to... →

SAPVIA mourns the passing of SAWEA CEO Ntombifuthi Ntuli

By: Schalk Burger 13th August 2021 Industry association the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA) mourns the passing of Ntombifuthi Ntuli, the CEO of fellow industry body the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA). SAPVIA described her death as "a tragic loss of a bold and brilliant leader, who was... →

Ntombifuthi Ntuli

Mantashe publishes long-awaited amendments to the Electricity Regulation Act

By: Donna Slater 12th August 2021 Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe, in an August 12 Government Gazette, published the eagerly awaited amendments to Schedule 2 of the Electricity Regulation Act to enable distributed generation plants of up to 100 MW to proceed without first obtaining a generation licence. To... →

Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe

Renewable energy sector sourcing specialist skills for long-term growth

By: Schalk Burger 11th August 2021 The renewable energy sector is preparing for the August 16 close of submissions for Bid Window 5 of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), as well as the next two bidding rounds, by sourcing specialist skills to deliver on renewable energy projects, says... →

Treasury publishes draft renewable energy premium rates

By: Donna Slater 11th August 2021 To allay uncertainties associated with the renewable energy (RE) premium rates of the Carbon Tax Act, the National Treasury has published a new draft RE Premium Notice, proposing the removal of the limitation of the tax period for which the RE premium rates would be applicable. The Carbon Tax... →

Absa completes R5.2bn debt refinancing for three Globeleq power plants

By: Schalk Burger 10th August 2021 Independent power producer Globeleq and financial services firm Absa have completed the senior debt refinancing of three of Globeleq's renewable energy power plants in South Africa, the companies said on August 10. The purpose of the refinancing is to enhance the projects’ capital structures,... →

From a coal-to-gas conversion to a microgrid factory, Eskom builds Komati’s just energy transaction case

By: Terence Creamer 3rd August 2021 State-owned electricity utility Eskom is hoping to transform the workshops at the Komati power station – identified as the flagship site for the piloting of a broader ‘just energy transition’ programme that couples decarbonisation with social upliftment – into a factory capable of manufacturing... →

A file photo of the Komati power station, which has generated electricity since 1961

Other procurement plans not affected by RMIPPPP deadline delay to end Sept – DMRE

By: Terence Creamer 2nd August 2021 The deadline for projects selected as preferred bids under the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (RMIPPPP) to reach commercial close has been extended to September 30, from an initial deadline of the end of July. However, the Department of Mineral Resources and... →

Photo by Creamer Media Chief Photographer Donna Slater
Minister Gwede Mantashe announced the initial end-July commercial-close deadline on March 18

New framework needed to accommodate third-party electricity generators on the national grid

By: Donna Slater 28th July 2021 The wheeling and trading of electricity produced by third parties into the national grid is a complex issue that requires frameworks and grid capacity building, State-owned power utility retail pricing corporate specialist Shirley Salvoldi has said. She spoke during a webinar on the topic of... →

Adopting a 1.5°C pathway could accelerate universal energy access in Africa

By: Terence Creamer 27th July 2021 Africa has a narrow window of opportunity to use its natural resource advantages and relatively low carbon emissions to attract the finance it needs to both accelerate a renewables-based energy transition that is supportive of a sub-1.5°C climate outcome and ensure universal energy access. This... →

Image of sun rising behind wind turbines

Renewable energy associations host capacity-building webinar ahead of fifth Bid Window

By: Donna Slater 21st July 2021 As role-players in South Africa’s renewable energy sector gear up to make submissions in Bid Window 5 (BW 5) of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) and the South African Photovoltaic Industry... →

Enel Green Power’s overall installed capacity in South Africa rises above 800 MW

By: Simone Liedtke 21st July 2021 Every year, the now completed Oyster Bay wind farm will generate over 568 GWh and prevent 590 000 t of carbon dioxide (CO²) from being emitted into the atmosphere. The project brings the number of operational Enel Green Power South Africa wind and solar sites in South Africa to nine, with an... →

Western Cape making progress on pioneering municipal power projects

By: Terence Creamer 21st July 2021 The Western Cape provincial government is currently evaluating responses to a request for information (RFI) issued by the Department of Economic Development and Tourism to assess the potential for renewable-energy projects in six municipalities included as part of its Municipal Energy Resilience... →

Image of solar rooftops with a Cape mountain in the background

IEA report points to growth in global electricity demand this year

By: Donna Slater 15th July 2021 The International Energy Agency (IEA) expects global electricity demand to rebound strongly this year and next. Electricity demand decreased by about 1% in 2020, but is expected to grow by 5% this year and by 4% in 2022, a new IEA report shows. →

Kenya’s Kipeto wind plant reaches commercial operation

By: Marleny Arnoldi 6th July 2021 Kenya-based Kipeto Energy has completed construction of the 100 MW Kipeto wind farm, in the Kajiado county, in Kenya. The project’s 60 wind turbines are producing power for the national grid. →

Kipeto wind farm, in Kenya

Opinion: Cheap renewables offer the key to universal electricity access in Africa

6th July 2021 In this opinion article, co-authored by European Commission executive vice president Frans Timmermans and International Energy Agency executive director Fatih Birol, it is argued that to make energy poverty history in Africa the whole world will need to work in concert to end funding for coal... →

European Commission executive VP Frans Timmerman

Sasol, IDC team up to stimulate South Africa’s green-hydrogen industry

By: Terence Creamer 5th July 2021 JSE-listed Sasol and the State-owned Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) have signed a memorandum of cooperation to jointly advance South Africa’s green-hydrogen economy. In a joint statement, the two companies said the memorandum recognised that South Africa was in a unique position to... →

Photo by Creamer Media
Power lines with Sasol's Secunda complex in the background

Britain to accelerate its phase-out of coal-fired power stations

By: Rebecca Campbell 30th June 2021 The UK government announced on Wednesday that the phasing out of the use of coal to generate electricity in Great Britain will be brought forward by a full year, to October 2024. (The only coal-fired power plant in Northern Ireland was already scheduled to close by 2024.) This is part of the... →

New learning hub aims to equip social practitioners to raise impact of IPP upliftment programmes

By: Terence Creamer 30th June 2021 A new learning and innovation hub to develop the skills and knowledge of social-performance practitioners in South Africa’s renewable-energy sector has been officially launched. Known as the Initiative for Social Performance in Renewable Energy, or INSPIRE, the venture aims to improving the... →

Hydropower important for storage, just transition to low-carbon electricity – IEA

By: Schalk Burger 30th June 2021 Hydropower's role in achieving a clean energy transition and in supporting the faster expansion of solar and wind generation capacity, is undervalued, the International Energy Agency's (IEA's) inaugural 'Hydropower Special Market' report states. Hydropower has a key role in the transition to... →

Company provides energy storage for hospital

By: Anna Moross 25th June 2021 Solar energy company SustainSolar has completed the supply of its battery energy storage system to the Cecilia Makiwane Hospital in East London, in the Eastern Cape. →

BATTERY ENERGY STORAGE The aim of the project – successfully completed at the end of March this year – is to alleviate healthcare pressure at the hospital during the Covid-19 pandemic

Decentralised power projects on a positive trajectory, says Nedbank CIB’s Peo

By: Donna Slater 24th June 2021 The South Africa power sector is undergoing a major shift towards decentralised power projects as a “massive energy crisis” grips the country, says Nedbank Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB) infrastructure, energy and telecommunications head Mike Peo. Speaking during an Infrastructure Africa... →

New global costs report confirms new renewables are undercutting existing coal

By: Terence Creamer 22nd June 2021 The cost of electricity from new solar and wind plants is increasingly undercutting the operating costs alone of existing coal‑fired power plants and strengthening the case for their early retirement, a newly released International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) report confirms. Published on... →

Aref II secures almost half of targeted capitalisation

By: Marleny Arnoldi 18th June 2021 The Africa Renewable Energy Fund (Aref) II has concluded its first close at €130-million, following a joint investment of €17.5-million from The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa and the Climate Technology Fund through the African Development Bank (AfDB). Aref II, a successor to the original... →

Fourth international WindAc Africa conference to be held in October

By: Simone Liedtke 15th June 2021 The South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) will host the fourth international academic wind energy conference – WindAc Africa 2021 – at the South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre’s conference centre, in Cape Town, from October 5 to 7. This academic exchange platform offers a... →

SAWEA CEO Ntombifuthi Ntuli

Global stock-taking report points to only modest renewables gains in total final energy consumption

By: Terence Creamer 15th June 2021 A new international stock-take of the global transition to renewable energy highlights an “alarming gap between targets and actions” with the share of fossil fuels in energy consumption failing to decrease for the tenth consecutive year in 2020, despite a 4% Covid-linked fall in demand. Published... →

South Africa on its way to decentralised power system – SAWEA

By: Simone Liedtke 11th June 2021 The South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) has welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement that the licensing-exemption threshold for companies to produce their own electricity will be increased from 1 MW to 100 MW. SAWEA says it views this as another indication the country is well... →

Wind industry committed to cooperating with govt to address the current power crisis

By: Simone Liedtke 9th June 2021 The South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) has welcomed the call from government to procure additional wind and solar energy from independent power producers (IPPs) to supply, over and above, what is currently allowed under their existing power purchase agreements (PPAs). SAWEA has engaged... →

Wind could produce affordable green hydrogen by 2030, Siemens Gamesa says

By: Reuters 9th June 2021 Wind power could make it possible to produce hydrogen without emitting greenhouse gases as cheaply as is currently feasible with fossil fuel energy by 2030, turbine maker Siemens Gamesa said in a white paper released on Wednesday. Policymakers see green hydrogen, which is made with renewable... →

Presidency backs hydrogen strategy, as new report confirms viability of ramp-up to 3.8mt/y by 2050

By: Terence Creamer 8th June 2021 Green hydrogen has been identified by The Presidency as the first of five ‘Big Frontier’ strategic investment opportunities and will be directly involved in the finalisation of a much-anticipated ‘Hydrogen Strategy and Investor Roadmap’ Infrastructure & Investment Office head, Dr Kgosientso... →

The Presidency's Infrastructure & Investment Office head, Dr Kgosientso Ramokgopa

Renewable energy organisations to host second series of business development webinars

By: Donna Slater 8th June 2021 Following a successful webinar series on business opportunities in the renewable energy sector in 2020, a second series started in May this year in collaboration between the South Africa Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) and the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA). The 2020... →

Masterplan to position South Africa as ‘globally significant’ renewables manufacturer

By: Terence Creamer 8th June 2021 Department of Mineral Resources and Energy director-general Advocate Thabo Mokoena reports that government intends using the South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (SAREM), which is currently being drafted, to position the country as a “globally significant” producer of inputs used in... →

New global report highlights growing demand for wind workforce training in South Africa

By: Terence Creamer 1st June 2021 South Africa is identified in a new international report as one of ten countries where training efforts will need to be intensified and accelerated over the coming five years to match the skills demand that will be created during the construction, installation, operation and maintenance of new... →

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