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Electricity News

Kibo mulls renewables cogeneration opportunities

By: Simone Liedtke 24th June 2019 In line with its strategy of incorporating long-term renewable energy solutions into its existing coal power projects, Africa-focused Kibo Energy has signed a collaboration agreement with ESS Tech to develop suitable baseload electricity storage solutions. Having recognised the increasing need to... →

South Africa, China sign deal to partner in Square Kilometer Array

By: African News Agency 24th June 2019 International Relations Minister Naledi Pandor, who is leading a South African delegation of senior government officials to the Forum for China-Africa Cooperation Coordinators’ Meeting, on Monday signed a deal which paves the way for Beijing entities to partner in South Africa's astronomy... →

Eskom's gain South Africa's pain as investors balk at debt

By: Bloomberg 24th June 2019 President Cyril Ramaphosa’s latest pledge to support Eskom Holdings is good news for the cash-strapped electricity company -- but some investors are balking at the prospect of increased sovereign-bond issuance to pay for the bailout. Ramaphosa told lawmakers last week South Africa would bring... →

Perdekraal East Wind Farm turbine foundations completed ahead of schedule

By: Simone Liedtke 24th June 2019 The developers of the Perdekraal East Wind Farm, in the Western Cape, last week completed the project’s 48 wind turbine foundations – three weeks ahead of schedule and still within budget. The first of the foundations was poured in November 2018. →

Freezing cold, water cuts and power outages: Gauteng's week of triple challenges

By: African News Agency 24th June 2019 Gauteng residents began the last week of June facing the triple challenges of freezing temperatures, water supply cuts and power outages in various parts of the province. In the south of Gauteng, the province, SA Weather Services warned of extreme cold on Monday, with overnight temperatures... →

Wild weather is endangering world's oldest form of clean power

By: Bloomberg 24th June 2019 The Kariba Dam has towered over one of Africa’s mightiest rivers for 60 years, forming the world’s largest reservoir and providing reliable electricity to Zambia and Zimbabwe. But as drought grips the region, flow on the Zambezi river has dwindled to a third of what it was a year ago. Last month,... →

GE wins bid to build $4bn Zambia-Zimbabwe hydropower plant

By: Bloomberg 21st June 2019 Zimbabwe and Zambia chose General Electric (GE) and Power Construction Corporation of China to build a $4-billion hydropower project straddling their border, Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa said. The 2 400 MW Batoka Gorge plant has been planned for years by the two southern African... →

Concentrated sunlight used to produce hydrogen

By: Schalk Burger 21st June 2019 Researchers at the Swiss École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (Lausanne Federal Institute of Technology, or EPFL) created a device that uses a smaller amount of rare and costly materials required to produce hydrogen by concentrating sunlight to maintain a high solar-to-fuel efficiency.... →

SA urged to home in on green-hydrogen export niche

By: Schalk Burger 21st June 2019 The technology to produce green hydrogen, which is produced by electrolysing water using renewable energy, in South Africa is becoming cost-effective enough to develop the capacity to sell the product in local and international industrial markets, says technical advisory services firm Kambuku... →

Mercuria, South African firms place bids for South32's SAEC coal mines

By: Reuters 20th June 2019 Seriti Resources and a consortium backed by global energy trader Mercuria are among up to six groups to have submitted final bids for the South African coal assets of South32, four sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. A consortium backed by South African miner Exxaro Resources dropped... →

Karpowership sees 'huge potential' in energy-hungry Africa

By: Bloomberg 20th June 2019 Karpowership, one of the world’s largest powership companies, is building vessels the size of several football fields to meet rising demand for energy, especially from Africa. The unit of Turkey’s Karadeniz Energy Group has about 20 ships under construction, according to Karpowership’s director... →

Kenya slashes 2030 power production targets as use still low – media

By: Reuters 20th June 2019 Kenya has cut its target for expanding its electricity output by 2030 by nearly 30% as demand is growing more slowly than expected, its energy minister was quoted as saying. The country now plans to add 7 200 MW of installed electricity capacity to its grid by 2030, down from an original target... →

Wits launches first solar district heating system in South Africa

20th June 2019 The South African National Energy Development Institute last month launched the first solar district heating system in South Africa at the Wits University’s Junction Campus, saving the buildings millions in energy costs a year. →

Wits launches first solar district heating system in South Africa

Five things to watch out for in Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation speech

By: Bloomberg 20th June 2019 South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday delivers his first state-of-the-nation speech since the ruling party extended its quarter-century grip on power in last month’s election. His address to Parliament in Cape Town is scheduled to begin at 19:00. Here are five key things to watch... →

TCTA moves ahead with R12.3bn second phase of Mokolo-Crocodile water scheme

By: Terence Creamer 19th June 2019 Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority (TCTA) announced on Wednesday that it had commenced with the implementation of the Mokolo-Crocodile Water Augmentation Project Phase 2A (MCWAP-2A) project, which is strongly associated with minerals and energy projects in the Limpopo province and is, thus, facing... →

Eskom appoints Nxumalo as new head of generation

By: Terence Creamer 19th June 2019 State-owned power utility Eskom has announced that Bheki Nxumalo has been appointed as its group executive for generation as from July 1 2019. Nxumalo takes over the role permanently from Andrew Etzinger, who has been acting in the position for the past nine months. →

Bheki Nxumalo

The only option for Eskom is one South Africa can't afford

By: Bloomberg 19th June 2019 South Africa simply has to rescue the nation’s distressed power utility. Even though it can’t afford to. Eskom Holdings supplies 95% of the nation’s electricity. If it went bankrupt, the entire economy would be dragged down as well. The danger of that is growing: The utility has a mountain of... →

Photo by Creamer Media's Terence Creamer
Eskom's Lethabo power station

Balwin registers over 16 000 EDGE certified units

By: Simone Liedtke 18th June 2019 JSE-listed Balwin Properties has registered more than 16 000 units across seven of its built-to-sell and three of its rental developments as excellence in design for greater efficiency certified with the Green Building Council South Africa. The registration will be completed over the next six... →

Balwin Properties Kikuyu development

Ramaphosa to announce more support for Eskom

By: Reuters 18th June 2019 President Cyril Ramaphosa will announce more measures to support cash-strapped power utility Eskom, his office said on Tuesday, without providing details. "It is expected that the President will announce further measures to support Eskom's efforts at recovery and financial and operational... →

Six new members join Hydrogen Council

By: Creamer Media Reporter 18th June 2019 Six new member companies have joined the Hydrogen Council, a global CEO-led initiative for hydrogen technologies. The council now has 60 members after BP joined as a steering member and AVL, Itochu Corporation, Liebherr Group, Power Assets Holdings and SinoHytec joined as supporting members. →

The world will get half its power from wind, solar by 2050

By: Bloomberg 18th June 2019 Nearly half the world’s electricity will come from renewable energy by 2050 as costs of wind, solar and battery storage continue to plummet. That titanic shift over the next three decades will come as electricity demand increases 62% and investors pump $13.3-trillion into new projects, according... →

Drought leaves key African hydro dam less than a third full

By: Bloomberg 18th June 2019 A regional drought has reduced water levels at Kariba Dam, the main source of power for Zambia and Zimbabwe, to less than a third of its capacity. The dam is only 29% full, compared with 88% a year ago and 31% at the start of June, the Zambezi River Authority said in an emailed statement on... →

Mergence’s investment in Namibian solar plant signals further localisation

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 14th June 2019 Local asset manager Mergence Unlisted Investment Managers (Namibia) has bought a majority stake in the 6 MW Momentous Solar One plant, near Keetmanshoop, in Namibia. “The purchase of a majority stake in the Keetmanshoop project signals a positive trend to localisation of the industry – a solar... →

Momentous Solar One solar energy plant

Commission approves M&R's buyout of Opti Power Projects

By: Creamer Media Reporter 14th June 2019 The Competition Commission has approved Murray & Roberts' (M&R's) proposed buyout of Opti Power Projects and Opti Power HR. Opti Power provides power transmission and distribution services. →

Hydrogen offers pathway for lowering hard-to-abate carbon emissions – IEA

By: Terence Creamer 14th June 2019 Hydrogen and hydrogen-based fuels could help facilitate the decarbonisation of a range of sectors where the pathway for achieving meaningful emission reductions is currently uncertain or difficult, a new global study argues. Released by the International Energy Agency (IEA) at a meeting of G20... →

Energy-saving LEDs illuminate hospital

By: Mc'Kyla Nortje 14th June 2019 High energy savings and a good colour rendering were achieved by replacing the high-pressure sodium installation with light-emitting-diode (LED) floodlights at the Tygerberg Hospital, in Cape Town, says lighting manufacturer BEKA Schréder sales engineer Grant Kemp. “High masts were installed... →

Green light for ‘net zero’

By: Mc'Kyla Nortje 14th June 2019 Following then Energy Minister Jeff Radebe’s announcement paving the way for small projects generating between 1 MW and 10 MW of their own renewable electricity to feed it back into the grid, green building consultants ecocentric see this as a crucial opportunity for companies to accelerate... →

RATINGS The GBCSA Rosebank office received a 4-Star Interiors Rating based on the assessment of the environmental attributes of the building’s interior fit-outs

Programme to revive local foundries

By: Mamaili Mamaila 14th June 2019 The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has mandated the National Cleaner Production Centre South Africa (NCPC-SA) to align its work stream with that of the National Foundries Technology Network (NFTN) to revive the local foundries sector. →

Photo by Bloomberg
RELEVANCE The NFTN facilitates the relevant skills and training projects to transfer knowledge in line with its skills development programme

NCPC-SA to drive resource efficiency in manufacturing

By: Mamaili Mamaila 14th June 2019 If the South African manufacturing sector wishes to mitigate the effects of rising tariffs and the new Carbon Tax, then it needs to become more resource efficient, according to the National Cleaner Production Centre South Africa (NCPC-SA) →

GREEN ECONOMY The manufacturing sector has not been growing because of its mounting challenges

Collaboration seen as key to unlocking South Africa’s industrial potential

By: Simone Liedtke 14th June 2019 The revival of South Africa’s flagging manufacturing sector is core to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s broader economic recovery plan. The importance attributed to manufacturing can be seen in the President’s decision to appoint the experienced Ebrahim Patel to lead the newly restructured Trade and... →

Côte d’Ivoire smart grid improves power security, access to power pool

By: Schalk Burger 14th June 2019 A smart electricity grid solution, developed and built by electricity multinational ABB, provides connectivity for all critical elements of the grid, helps operators to balance supply and demand and, crucially, enables Côte d’Ivoire to access the West African Power Pool (Wapp), says ABB Power... →

New green building certification introduced in South Africa

By: Mc'Kyla Nortje 14th June 2019 Green building consulting company Solid Green Consulting is the first company to be working on an actual Living Building Challenge project in South Africa. The programme was developed by nongovernmental organisation International Living Future Institute (ILFI), to lead transformation towards a... →

MARLOES REININK The Living Building Challenge is possibly the most rigorous green building certification programme and sustainable design framework globally

Renewable energy jobs reach 11m

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 13th June 2019 Eleven-million people were employed in renewable energy worldwide in 2018, International Renewable Energy Agency’s (Irena’s) ‘Renewable Energy and Jobs Annual Review 2019’ reveals. This represents an increase on the 10.3-million people employed in the industry in 2017. →

Seychelles floating solar project moves into next phase of implementation

By: Tasneem Bulbulia 13th June 2019 The government of Seychelles has launched a request for proposals (RfP) process for an independent power producer floating solar photovoltaic project. A group of prequalified bidders, which were selected in 2018 as part of the first phase of procurement, will be required to submit their full... →

Necsa board states agency has dire finances

By: Rebecca Campbell 13th June 2019 The South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) issued on Thursday a curt response to the press release issued the day before by the National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union. In its statement, the union alleged that the Necsa board was proposing to retrench 400 employees and... →

Necsa logo

Pioneering 1 MW wave-energy pilot project being built in Hermanus

By: Terence Creamer 13th June 2019 A South African wave-energy start-up is building a pioneering 1 MW pilot project, based on its patented homegrown design, which will supply clean electricity to a large-scale Hermanus abalone farm, in the Western Cape. Mean Sea Level (MSL) is developing the first-of-its-kind project with equity... →

Photo by Mean Sea Level
Construction of 1 MW wave-energy pilot project under way in Hermanus

Storage presents African utilities with opportunities to rekindle investor appeal

By: Simone Liedtke 12th June 2019 The advent of renewable energy and new storage technologies presents Africa’s utilities with an opportunity to increase capacity and efficiency, while rekindling their appeal to investors, Standard Bank said on Wednesday. The “clear and rapid” evolution in Africa’s energy and energy... →

Standard Bank power and infrastructure head Stephen Barnes

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