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Climate Change News

Presidential Climate Change Coordinating Commission seen as key to navigating South Africa’s ‘just transition’

By: Terence Creamer Updated 4 hours ago A member of South Africa’s National Planning Commission has called for the Presidential Climate Change Coordinating Commission to be established, arguing that such a multi-stakeholder institutional platform is required to implement the just transition vision outlined in the country’s National... →

GreenCape partners with Swiss foundation to promote cleantech companies

By: Marleny Arnoldi 7th July 2020 Green economy solutions company GreenCape has entered into a collaboration agreement with Solar Impulse Foundation through the International Cleantech Network (ICN). GreenCape will help the foundation to find, select and promote 1 000 clean and profitable solutions that contribute to protecting... →

Nedbank launches SDG-linked capital instrument

By: Marleny Arnoldi 6th July 2020 Nedbank has launched a new “green” tier two capital instrument that is linked with sustainable development goals (SDG), which is the first of its kind in South Africa. The instrument is linked on the green bonds segment of the JSE. →

Standard Bank shareholders re-elect nonexecs despite Just Share concerns

By: Marleny Arnoldi 26th June 2020 Financial services provicer Standard Bank Group has welcomed the reappointment of all its nonexecutive directors, including those that were alleged to be climate change conflicted by activist organisation Just Share. Standard Bank earlier in June reiterated its commitment to a climate-related... →

Electric vehicle rally to maintain demand for battery metals despite Covid-19

By: Donna Slater 19th June 2020 Although subdued as a result of Covid-19, demand for battery metals, including cobalt, lithium and copper, will remain strong as a result of growth in the global electric vehicles (EV) market, business intelligence company CRU UK cobalt, lithium and battery markets senior analyst George Heppel... →

Cogen technology heating up in Africa

By: Tracy Hancock 12th June 2020 South Africa needs to realise that the rest of Africa is becoming more business friendly, and it may no longer be the sole gateway to Africa, which is showing noticeable demand for co-generation (co-gen) technology, says heat generation technology specialist Steam Generation commercial director... →

PLANTATION POTENTIAL Steam Generation receives many enquiries from Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania, which is known for its tea plantations that present potential for the supply of biomass and co-gen technology

Commonwealth urges members to focus on care of seaborne economies

By: Donna Slater 9th June 2020 Commonwealth secretary-general Patricia Scotland urges governments to ensure their countries’ post-Covid-19 economic recoveries are environmentally sustainable and safe for the ocean. She also asks that they reform their development of strategies in a way that supports vibrant and sustainable... →

Standard Bank denies conflict of interest claims

By: Marleny Arnoldi 8th June 2020 Standard Bank has reiterated its commitment to a climate-related risk approach and defended its board members, after activist organisation Just Share questioned the election or re-election of directors that have ties to fossil fuel operations. The organisation said seven of Standard Bank’s 18... →

Giant spill in Russia offers a glimpse of the Arctic’s future

By: Bloomberg 8th June 2020 Investigators have determined that the leakage of of 20 000 t of diesel (about 150 000 barrels) from a reservoir at a power plant in Russia’s Far North was caused by damage from thawing permafrost—just the latest sign of the catastrophic effects climate change is having in the Arctic. “Entire... →

Climate Justice Coalition launches Green New Eskom campaign

By: Marleny Arnoldi 5th June 2020 The Climate Justice Coalition (CJC) has launched a Green New Eskom campaign, which demands a rapid and just transition to a more socially-owned renewable energy-powered and zero carbon economy. The CJC comprises trade unions, civil society and community organisations working together on a... →

Photo by Creamer Media
Jeffreys Bay wind farm

Climate change should still receive attention in the midst of Covid-19

By: Donna Slater 5th June 2020 The leaders of nations belonging to the Commonwealth should continue to prioritise climate change and the mitigation of dangerous emissions with the same urgency they did pre-Covid-19, says the Commonwealth of Nations (Commonwealth). The organisation states that, even with the Covid-19 pandemic... →

Rolls-Royce commits to United Nations’ zero carbon emissions goals for 2030 and 2050

By: Rebecca Campbell 5th June 2020 UK-based industrial technology group Rolls-Royce has announced that it has joined the United Nations’ (UN’s) ‘Race to Zero’ campaign, as a consequence of which the company has committed itself to achieving net zero carbon emissions from its operations by 2030. In its statement, the company... →

WEF, Prince of Wales launch Great Reset initiative to drive global change

By: Simone Liedtke 4th June 2020 With the Covid-19 pandemic having exposed various existing societal fault lines and laid bare a fundamental lack of social cohesion, fairness, inclusion and equality, the World Economic Forum (WEF) on June 3 announced the launch of its Great Reset initiative. Drawing from the vision and vast... →

Responsible sourcing of critical minerals in focus as energy transition drives up demand

By: Terence Creamer 3rd June 2020 The accelerating pace and scale of the global clean-energy transition is poised to dramatically increase demand for critical energy minerals and metals, from aluminium to zirconium, with implications not only for the resources sector, but for geopolitics. The future energy system will be far more... →

Nedbank tables climate risk resolutions for May 22 shareholder meeting

By: Marleny Arnoldi 12th May 2020 In a first for a South African company, Nedbank’s board has tabled its own shareholder resolution on climate risk. Nedbank is also the first and only South African financial institution that has completely excluded the financing of new coal-fired power plants, says nonprofit responsible... →

Climate-smart mining tech even more important in a Covid-19 context – World Bank

By: Marleny Arnoldi 12th May 2020 The production of minerals such as graphite, lithium and cobalt could potentially increase by 500% by 2050 to meet the growing demand for clean energy technologies, the World Bank reports. In a report, titled 'Minerals for Climate Action: The Mineral Intensity of the Clean Energy Transition',... →

New label can improve consumer education

By: Tracy Hancock 8th May 2020 The next challenge for the South African domestic appliance industry is the migration to a new energy efficiency label under the Appliance Energy Efficiency Standards and Labelling (S&L) programme to improve consumer education. The label will simplify energy classes and provide explanations of... →

ON PAR The energy efficiency of domestic appliances in South Africa is generally of a high standard

South Africa has duty to address SADC energy efficiency

By: Tracy Hancock 8th May 2020 South Africa has a duty to make the energy efficiency knowledge accrued through the Industrial Energy Efficiency Project (IEEP) more accessible to the rest of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region to help drive its economic development through globally competitive... →

ENERGY HEAVY South Africa’s industry consumes more than half of the energy used by the industrial sectors in all the remaining SADC States

Total sets industry’s highest zero-emissions target

By: Marleny Arnoldi 5th May 2020 Petrochemicals giant Total plans to achieve net-zero emissions across its operations worldwide by 2050. This ambition is supported by the strategy to develop Total as a broad-based energy company, with oil and gas, low-carbon electricity and carbon-neutrality solutions as integrated parts of... →

Incentives needed to aid local energy tech

By: Mamaili Mamaila 1st May 2020 While there is an increased focus on local content across several South African industries, government could do more in terms of incentivising local manufacturing, says energy solutions company i-G3n co-founder and director Sydney Phakathi. →

NO FUSS WHATSOEVER i-G3n offers standard solutions that it can also tailor to suit the specific needs of every client

Eskom says all repurposing options on table for Komati, Hendrina and Grootvlei

By: Terence Creamer 28th April 2020 State-owned power utility Eskom insists that all options are on the table as it considers proposals for the repurposing of three coal-fired power stations – Komati, Hendrina and Grootvlei – that are scheduled to cease producing electricity between 2022 and 2026. The utility issued an expression... →

Komati

Climate change remains a top concern for people alongside Covid-19

By: Marleny Arnoldi 22nd April 2020 Market research and consultancy firm Ipsos has reminded governments to not take their eyes off the issue of climate change amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The firm notes that eight in every ten South Africans surveyed online believed at the start of this year that average temperatures would... →

Decarbonising of local power generation sedate

By: Tracy Hancock 17th April 2020 Decarbonising South Africa’s electricity generation is no longer a technical challenge, it is a political and economic issue, says University of Pretoria Graduate School of Technology Management professor David Walwyn. The Integrated Resource Plan 2019 (IRP 2019) forecasts that it will take... →

RENEWED PROJECTION The growing appeal of grid-tied and standalone rooftop solar systems may alter the Integrated Resource Plan’s 30-year projection for the decarbonising of South Africa’s electric power generation

Modular power solutions increasing in Africa

By: Simone Liedtke 17th April 2020 In most power plants across Africa, clients prefer to install modular-type solutions, also known as containerised solutions or e-houses, and dry-type transformers fit “perfectly” within this scope, says transformer supplier and specialist Trafo Power Solutions MD David Claassen. The preference... →

DAVID CLAASSEN Trafo also designs and customises its transformers according to client specifications and requirements

BlackRock launches impact fund towards companies driving sustainable goals

By: Marleny Arnoldi 16th April 2020 Financial technology provider BlackRock has launched a high-conviction active equity impact strategy called the BlackRock Global Impact Fund. The fund gives investors the opportunity to direct their investments toward companies helping to address major world challenges. →

Standard Bank says it is not legally obliged to have voting on proposed climate resolutions

By: Marleny Arnoldi 16th April 2020 Standard Bank has decided to not table proposed climate change risk resolutions for voting by shareholders at its annual general meeting (AGM) in May, following pressure from nonprofit shareholder activism organisations Just Share and Raith Foundation to do so. Just Share executive director... →

Storage should aim to address cost reduction

10th April 2020 Ensuring that renewable energy is a useful asset to the grid and that the companies that own and operate it are profitable, while also producing less expensive energy, is a complex job. →

Association aims to address storage hybrid projects

10th April 2020 The South African Wind Energy Association (Sawea) has announced that it will be creating a discussion platform to support members and the broader renewable energy sector, by addressing questions that are emerging in relation to wind and storage hybrid projects. →

NTOMBIFUTHI NTULI There is a global wave of hybrid projects that use, among other things, wind and battery storage

Storage key to exploiting renewables’ full potential

By: Mamaili Mamaila 10th April 2020 Energy storage is a key technology to unlock renewable-energy potential, says full-service renewable-energy provider New Southern Energy (NSE) MD John Deepak. →

CHANGES OVERTIME A solar panel currently uses considerably fewer inputs, compared with a solar panel ten years ago

Covid-19 showing importance of early action in tackling global threats, says NPO

By: Simone Liedtke 8th April 2020 While the world’s immediate priorities have shifted to focus on dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic, the virus is showing the importance of early action in tackling global threats, and it is therefore crucial that the world not emerge from this crisis to find itself worse off in terms of efforts... →

Ground-breaking R488m fund seeks to catalyse green-economy SMMEs

By: Terence Creamer 7th April 2020 An innovative new fund has been launched in South Africa to incentivise fund managers to invest in small, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs) that are able to generate verifiable green outcomes and jobs in the energy, water, waste, infrastructure and land-management sectors. The... →

Building for sustainability promotes valuable returns

3rd April 2020 There is a direct link between the stability of an economy and ongoing development, says consulting engineers firm WSP Africa structures regional director Johan Piekaar. Currently, the local construction and property industries are experiencing a lull owing to reduced expenditure by government on... →

Photo by Creamer Media
CONSTRUCTIVE BUILDING Implementing a sustainable building philosophy provides value-add throughout the value chain

Coronavirus forces postponement of UN’s COP26 climate summit

By: Creamer Media Reporter 2nd April 2020 The United Nations (UN) climate change conference set to take place in Glasgow, Scotland, in November, has been postponed as a result of the outbreak of coronavirus, the UN and UK government have confirmed in a joint statement. The twenty-sixth conference of the parties (COP26) has been delayed... →

Industry reaction to Minister’s call for higher levels of clean-coal investment

By: Mamaili Mamaila 27th March 2020 There is much scepticism domestically and internationally about the potential for clean-coal technology (CCT). In South Africa, however, there has been an amplification in recent months of calls for accelerated efforts to be made to finding innovative solutions to the serious environmental and... →

Photo by GE
POWER PLANT OPTIMISATION Eskom’s Kusile power station’s use of the wet flue gas desulphurisation technology ensures lower emissions

Growing interest in green bonds

By: Tracy Hancock 20th March 2020 Local interest in green bond and/or securitisation instruments is robust and growing, says financial services provider Nedbank’s Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB) debt capital markets origination principal, Arvana Singh. Nedbank issued R2.7-billion in 2019 across two auctions, which it says... →

ARVANA SINGH Increasing pressure is being placed on investors and financiers to allocate capital responsibly

Africa can develop on low-carbon growth path

By: Tracy Hancock 20th March 2020 Choosing between a low-carbon future and Africa’s economic growth is a false dichotomy, as these goals do not need to be in competition, says independent power producer Pele Energy Group founder Fumani Mthembi, a speaker at this year’s Power & Electricity World Africa. “The global investment... →

SUNNY DISPOSITION The global investment sector is increasingly more interested in funding renewable-energy projects, such as solar farms, as opposed to coal projects

Effective forest management strengthens resilience against climate-related natural disasters

By: Yvonne Silaule 13th March 2020 Effective forest management can strengthen resilience and bolster capacity for adaptation when it comes to climate-related natural disasters, says Environment, Forestry and Fisheries Deputy Minister Maggie Sotyu. Speaking at the opening of the twenty-second African Forestry and Wildlife... →

Topics In These Articles

Africa Energy Financial Projects Renewable Energy Solar Sustainable Innovation Modular Waste Construction Consulting Engineering Flow Installation PROJECT Safety Storage System Water Health Risk Management Screening Testing Waste Management Industrial Measurement Resources Technology Gold ... more

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