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Electricity News

Renewable energy solves current sector woes

By: Mamaili Mamaila 19th April 2019 Renewable energy provides solutions for the challenges associated with power generation, as the price of photovoltaics and wind energy technologies have gone down owing to the increase in the efficiency of the technologies, says Stellenbosch University Centre for Renewable and Sustainable Energy... →

Ongoing copper cable theft negatively affects power capacity

By: Mamaili Mamaila 19th April 2019 Ongoing copper cable theft from companies, such as State-owned power utility Eskom, has devastating effects on the local copper industry, says Copper Development Association Africa (CDAA) executive chairperson Evert Swanepoel. →

COPPER ALLIANCE The high demand for copper and copper alloys, with demand mainly from the Asian region, particularly China, is causing expensive exports to many countries

Partnership ensures reliable power transmission

By: Mamaili Mamaila 19th April 2019 To ensure reliable power transmission, solar industry supplier Valsa is partnering with solar energy equipment suppliers A+Sun, SAT Control, Jinko Solar, Seraphim, Viasolis and electronics company Schweizer, as well as funding institutions, to provide funding for solar photovoltaic (PV) projects. →

TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT Valsa brings the latest technology in panels and tracking systems to the market while localising some of the production

Access to finance hampers power sector progress

By: Mamaili Mamaila 19th April 2019 Among the challenges facing the power generation sector is access to finance to upgrade and maintain power infrastructure to extend the life of existing assets in a sustainable way, especially when it comes to new digital technologies, says international power generation company General Electric... →

Software upgrade for Sky Eye Elios drones in the pipeline

By: Mamaili Mamaila 19th April 2019 Rope-access company Skyriders Access Specialists will partner with a local software company to advance the current software on its Sky Eye Elios drones, as it continues to refine the technology in line with its ongoing inspection and maintenance work at various industrial plants this year. →

POWER RIDE Skyriders’ rope access and drone solutions gives the company an edge in the industry

Sanedi signs contract with SolarTurtle to develop next-gen solar kiosks

By: Schalk Burger 19th April 2019 The South African National Energy Development Institute (Sanedi), the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and community empowerment solar photovoltaic (PV) product developer SolarTurtle have signed a contract to develop the next-generation SolarTurtle solar energy kiosk, called the... →

BABYTURTLE The BabyTurtles can be moved to events, taxi ranks, schools or other high foot-traffic areas where people have phones to recharge

Plan required for uptake of 4IR in power sector

By: Mamaili Mamaila 19th April 2019 The power generation and transmission sector has been slow in the uptake of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), says global engineering company Aurecon Group energy unit manager Sibu Mvana. →

Standard Bank shareholders to vote on climate-risk exposure reporting resolution

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 18th April 2019 Shareholders of financial services provider Standard Bank will, at the bank's next annual general meeting, vote on a resolution tabled by two shareholders to require the bank to report on its exposure to climate risk in its lending, financing and investment activities. "This is the first time... →

Opinion: How can embedded generators help close South Africa's power supply gap?

By: Tobias Bischof-Niemz 18th April 2019 There has been no increase in overall electricity demand since South Africans first began experiencing load-shedding back in 2008. Yet the threat of rotational cuts remains, because of the precipitous decline in the energy availability factor (EAF) of Eskom’s coal fleet and the underinvestment in... →

LOAD PROFILE: The household load does not match the solar system’s daytime production profile

Hulking nukes trying to get nimble in volatile power markets

By: Bloomberg 18th April 2019 Nuclear reactors, the lumbering giants of electricity generation, are trying to become more agile. Power grids have become so swamped with volatile wind and solar that traditional plants are being forced to abruptly adjust their own output to keep systems stable – or pay a penalty. That’s... →

Africa's sole nuclear plant undergoes revamp to extend lifespan

By: Bloomberg 18th April 2019 Eskom Holdings, the State utility that supplies 95% of South Africa’s power, is overhauling the continent’s sole nuclear plant with the aim of extending its lifespan by at least 20 years. The revamp of the 1 860 MW Koeberg facility comes as Eskom struggles to produce enough electricity to meet... →

Load-shedding may cut growth close to zero, SARB says

By: Bloomberg 18th April 2019 South Africa’s power cuts could bring economic growth for the year close to zero if they continue at the same severity seen in March, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said. The wave of rolling blackouts that started in November and are among the worst the country has yet experienced could... →

SARB deputy governor Kuben Naidoo

Eskom CEO says 'days of surprises' over as problems exposed

By: Bloomberg 17th April 2019 Almost 15 months into the job, and the boss of South Africa’s state-owned electricity company is getting to grips with issues spanning corruption to defective power plants that threatened to collapse the grid. “The days of surprises are over,” Eskom Holdings CEO Phakamani Hadebe said in an... →

Acumen closes $70m impact fund for clean energy in Africa

By: Bloomberg 17th April 2019 Jacqueline Novogratz’s impact investing group closed an almost $70-million fund to back companies delivering affordable and renewable energy to mostly poor consumers in East Africa. KawiSafi Ventures seeks to bring clean energy to ten-million people with investments in fast-growing companies... →

Impediments to small-scale embedded generation

17th April 2019 Creamer Media's Chanel de Bruyn speaks to Engineering News Editor Terence Creamer about the policy and regulatory impediments that are standing in the way of investment in small-scale embedded generation. →

Impediments to small-scale embedded generation

Policy and regulatory malaise undermining efforts to address power deficit

By: Terence Creamer 16th April 2019 Lingering policy uncertainty and regulatory delays are continuing to impede the development of hundreds of small-scale embedded generation (SSEG) projects, which are seen at the quickest and cheapest way for South Africa to address its current electricity supply deficit. The South African... →

New Kusile unit powers up, 8 months ahead of schedule

By: News24Wire 16th April 2019 For the first time on Sunday Kusile Unit 3 produced power, according to an internal memo to Eskom staff. According to the note from Eskom's chief operating officer Jan Oberholzer, sent out to staff on Monday, the synchronisation of the unit happened eight months ahead of the scheduled December... →

GIZ launches tender for LED streetlights

By: Simone Liedtke 16th April 2019 The Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammernarbeit, in rolling out its Energy Efficiency Street Lighting Retrofit Project, has called for companies to submit bids for the supply of 36 light-emitting-diode (LED) floodlight luminaires with telemanagement systems. In cooperation with the... →

Eskom executive appointed to EPRI board

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 15th April 2019 Eskom COO Jan Oberholzer has been appointed to the board of directors of the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) – an international organisation that conducts research and development related to the generation, delivery and use of electricity for the benefit of the public. EPRI’s... →

Activists push South African pension funds to tally climate costs

By: Bloomberg 15th April 2019 Pension funds in South Africa have a legal obligation to account for the financial effects of climate change on their investments, according to two groups lobbying money managers to pay closer attention to the issue. Shareholder activists Just Share and environmental law organisation ClientEarth... →

Lemur invites EPCTC contractors to tender for Imaloto project

By: Marleny Arnoldi 12th April 2019 Aim-listed Bushveld Minerals’ subsidiary Lemur Holdings has put out an invitation for expressions of interest for the engineering, procurement, construction, testing and commissioning (EPCTC) of some parts of the company’s Imaloto power project, in Madagascar. The company urged interested... →

High risk of load-shedding for Thursday evening

By: News24Wire 11th April 2019 For the first time in almost three weeks South Africans may be faced with rotational power outages on Thursday evening, as Eskom again battles a shortage of capacity. The power utility announced on Thursday afternoon that there is a high risk of Stage 1 load-shedding for Thursday evening between... →

Goldman says Eskom's crisis leaves no time for unbundling plan

By: Bloomberg 11th April 2019 South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s plan to split the State-owned power utility into generation, distribution and transmission divisions will take longer than the government has to revive the business, according to Goldman Sachs Group. Eskom Holdings is focusing on trying to avoid... →

Manufacturing Indaba to focus on negative effects of power outages

By: African News Agency 11th April 2019 Organisers of the Manufacturing Indaba 2019 said on Thursday that this year's conference is set to unpack promising solutions that manufacturers can implement in an attempt to recover their losses resulting from the nation's rolling blackouts. Major concerns have surfaced among South African... →

Bushveld subsidiary advances Imaloto project towards financial close

By: Marleny Arnoldi 10th April 2019 Aim-listed Bushveld Minerals’ coal and energy subsidiary Lemur Holdings has signed a project preparation finance facility agreement with the Development Bank of Southern Africa for $1-million, which will be used for the development of the Imaloto project, in Madagascar. The loan will enable Lemur... →

Western Cape schools to become solar-powered using solar-leasing funding

By: Schalk Burger 10th April 2019 Solar microleasing marketplace Sun Exchange announced on Wednesday that it would be a key partner in providing solar power for several Western Cape Education Department schools, starting with Protea Heights Academy, in Cape Town. Sun Exchange enables schools and businesses to have solar power... →

Cost of decarbonising global energy system falls sharply, new report shows

By: Terence Creamer 9th April 2019 Rapidly falling renewable-energy costs, together with emerging opportunities to electrify other energy end-uses such as transportation and heating, are continuing to reduce the investment premium associated with placing the world on a more climate-friendly path, a new international report... →

Eskom to class action firm: We can’t be sued for load-shedding and here’s why

By: News24Wire 9th April 2019 Eskom says that based on legal advice it has received, a law firm seeking to initiate a class action suit against it on behalf of companies which have been affected by load-shedding, has little ground to stand on. Eskom spokesperson Khulu Phasiwe said that the legal advice the power utility had... →

Winter plan to minimise load-shedding requires South Africans to use electricity efficiently, says Eskom

By: African News Agency 8th April 2019 The State-owned power utility Eskom on Monday urged South Africans to use electricity efficiently to minimise load-shedding during cold weather conditions. Eskom said the demand for electricity was projected to increase and the power system was forecast to be tight for this week. The winter plan... →

Economic growth in Africa below population growth for the fourth year in row

By: Terence Creamer 8th April 2019 Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest economies, including South Africa, continued to act as a drag on the economic performance of the region in 2018, new analysis by the World Bank shows. The nineteenth edition of the bank’s bi-annual ‘Africa’s Pulse’ publication indicates that growth across the... →

Report says digital transformation has potential to accelerate development in Africa

Globeleq, Aurora Power Solutions to build PV projects in Zambia

By: Simone Liedtke 8th April 2019 Independent power producer Globeleq and renewable energy company Sola Group’s Aurora Power Solutions have been awarded two 20 MW solar photovoltaic projects, in Zambia. These projects form part of the Get Fit Zambia programme, through which the government aims to procure 200 MW of renewable... →

Power shortages in South Africa could get a whole lot worse

By: Bloomberg 8th April 2019 An electricity-supply crisis is looming in South Africa that could make intermittent outages in the past few months seem trivial by comparison. Eskom Holdings, which supplies almost all the nation’s power, will lose more than a quarter of its current generating capacity over the next decade as it... →

Get Fit Zambia successfully awards six solar PV projects

By: Simone Liedtke 5th April 2019 Get Fit Zambia, which was designed to assist the Zambian government in the implementation of its Refit Strategy, on Friday announced that six solar photovoltaic independent power producer projects, totalling 120 MW, have been awarded. Get Fit Zambia aims to procure 200 MW of renewable energy... →

Clough JV awarded civil works contract for Australian hydropower project

By: Marleny Arnoldi 5th April 2019 The Clough Salini joint venture (JV) has been appointed as the contractor for the Snowy 2.0 hydropower project, in New South Wales, Australia. The JV’s scope of work on the project is valued at about A$1.8-billion, spanning over the next five years. →

Ncondezi, GridX start JV for solar, battery projects in Africa

By: Marleny Arnoldi 5th April 2019 Aim-listed Ncondezi Energy has entered into a term sheet with power developer GridX Africa Development, enabling the companies to enter into a joint venture (JV) that is focused on building and operating captive solar and battery storage solutions for the African commercial and industrial sector.... →

IPPs and distributed energy solutions drive innovation

5th April 2019 While the obligation to deliver safe, reliable power to customers through aging assets is paramount, utilities face a rapidly evolving market as independent power producers (IPPs) and distributed generation solutions drive innovation and investment, says engineering, procurement and construction... →

SOLAR POWER Distributed energy resources are forcing utilities to find ways to distribute electricity in a sustainable and efficient manner or risk losing customers

Demand for utility-scale battery solutions increasing

By: Thabi Madiba 5th April 2019 Advancements in energy storage technology are starting to reflect in the rise of utility-scale battery solutions, which could revolutionise the ability of intermittent renewables to have higher penetration into the grid, says solar energy company SOLA Future Energy CEO Dr Dom Wills. The company... →

ROBBEN ISLAND BATTERY ROOM SOLA stores excess solar power in lithium-ion batteries and deploys it as the sun sets, resulting in an overall reduction of the diesel used to operate generators

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