SA Should Focus on Private Sector Energy Generation

Dear Editor

The DA calls on the Electricity and Energy Minister, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, to put greater focus on distributed generation with the help of the private sector, rather than patching up South Africa’s increasingly costly and unreliable coal power plants.

The cost of R90 billion to extend the life of the country’s coal power plants is a massive burden for South Africa’s dwindling taxpayer base who are also fighting a proposed tariff increase of 36%. This while building up a large private sector generation capacity and accelerating the bid windows for the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) and Battery Energy Storage Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (BESIPPPP) to stabilise the electricity grid through battery back-up are more affordable and sustainable alternatives.

While the DA believes that coal power plants should only be fully decommissioned once our alternative sources are fully in place to provide consistent power without a threat of future loadshedding, the procurement from independent power producers and battery back-ups should be the focus.

South Africans cannot afford the exorbitant tariff increase or the health and climate implications that extending the life of the coal plants would impose. Minister Ramokgopa has had success in loosening loadshedding’s death grip on the country.

Now he must look to the future and foster the implementation of energy sources and partnerships that will ensure sustainability and economic growth.

Regards

Kevin Mileham MP
DA Spokesperson on Electricity & Energy