Nonprofit organisation Green Connection believes the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (RMIPPPP) has failed in its objective to get power onto the grid.

Green Connection strategic lead Liziwe McDaid says the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy ought to scrap the programme.

McDaid explains that South Africa has now spent more than a year trying to procure emergency power with no result and with no end in sight.

The initial bid date in the programme was extended to December 20 and, although the winning bids were announced in March this year, the results were immediately questioned by experts.

Karpowership was selected as a preferred bidder to deliver 1 220 MW of the 1 845 MW sought by the RMIPPPP.

The powership projects have raised questions about the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s promotion of fossil fuels. Many have also questioned the nature of the contracts, which would be for 20 years, and not the short-term “emergency” solutions many had anticipated.

Karpowership’s projects have not been granted environmental authorisation and another bidder, DNG Energy, has sought legal action over claims that the RMIPPPP bidding had been subject to corruption.

“Adding to the controversy is the fact that there was no certainty regarding energy costs as the prices on the electricity generated were purportedly linked to the dollar/rand exchange rate,” says McDaid.

Green Connection has attempted to participate in the environmental-impact assessment, but says it was flawed as a process, since it failed to consider the impacts of 20 years of underwater noise on marine life, and the knock-on effects of how this might undermine the livelihoods of small-scale fishing communities in the affected areas.

Karpowership has no decision from the Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment on its appeal against the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment’s refusal to grant it environmental authorisation, it has no electricity generation licence from the National Energy Regulator of South Africa, there is a Parliamentary inquiry pending, and there are two potential court cases pending.

This is likely to impact on Karpowership’s ability to reach financial close on its proposed projects under the RMIPPPP by September 30. If it does not reach financial close, the projects will not be able to proceed.