Africa-Press – South-Africa. The government has awarded itself a 56% rating on implementing the national energy action plan launched a year ago to address the country’s energy crisis.
In a report-back briefing on Sunday, Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said that of the 50 actions in the plan, eight had been completed, and 20 were on track. But two had not yet begun, and eight were categorised as “off-track with an intervention needed”.
The plan is coordinated by the National Energy Crisis Committee (Necom) in the Presidency. Ramokgopa has had regular report backs on progress since his appointment last year.
Necom’s biggest headaches where work had yet to begin were the development of a net billing framework for businesses and households and a monitoring mechanism for installing rooftop solar.
The National Energy Regulator of SA (Nersa) must develop the net billing framework. It will provide private generators with a tariff structure to regulate how they are reimbursed for the energy they feed into the grid offset against what they pay Eskom or their municipality for electricity and use of the grid. Nersa has called for public comment.
Necom also wants a more formal system of monitoring how much solar PV has been installed. Based on falling demand, Eskom has estimated that by last month 4 400MW had been installed – three-quarters of it over the previous year – by businesses, mining operations, agriculture, industry, and households.
Said head of the Presidency’s Project Management Office Rudi Dicks:
The eight actions that were “off track” are:
Dicks said all of these actions had commenced, but that “they are not where we want them to be”.
Had the government’s procurement programmes in the REIPPP materialised as designed, the combined amount of energy capacity in the pipeline from the REIPPP would be 5 800MW. Ramokgopa said it was anticipated that 2 300MW from these two bid windows would materialise in the next two years. Of the RMIPPP round of 2 000MW only 150MW have entered construction.
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On the plan’s successes, Ramokgopa highlighted the anticipated expedited return of units and Medupi and Kusile, which were taken out of long-term action due to a fire at the former and the collapse of a chimney at the latter.
Progress has also been made to ensure increased diesel supplies and more funding for diesel, and the debt relief package has been approved for Eskom.
Private investment in energy generation has been accelerated by the expediting of regulatory requirements and significant progress made in installing solar PV by businesses and households.
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