With load shedding here to stay for the foreseeable future, it’s back to basics for South Africans.
Call it load shedding, or rolling blackouts, the fact is it’s here to stay for the foreseeable future and South Africans are going to have to learn to live with it for a while yet.

The Citizen spoke to Lungile Mashele, an energy specialist at the Development Bank of South Africa, who also holds qualifications in economics, insolvency law, cost engineering and energy, about practical ways to minimise the effects.

“Have your work and home load shedding schedules handy. There’s no point in sitting in three-hour traffic to get to work to discover that there are no lights. Rather work from home until your office has lights,” advised Mashele.

“Keep your phone, power bank and torch charged and ready for a blackout. Invest in power-surge plugs. Continuous outages and related trips may damage your appliances.”

There is a growing conversation in the country over which is better: solar photo-voltaic power or fuel-driven generators.

“The preferred option is a complete retrofit of a home using gas to cook and for water heating, or solar water heating,” Mashele said.

“In addition to that, investing in solar PV with an inverter and battery storage will sustain you during periods of load shedding.”

Mashele explained an inverter converted the direct current produced by the panels to alternating current, and synchronised the power produced within the home with the Eskom grid.

“This option requires a rather large capital outlay. However, with the rising costs of electricity, it has a generally low payback period. A typical suburban household will require an investment of about R80,000. Depending on your consumption you can recover your costs within two to five years,” Mashele said.

“Generators present a cheaper alternative in terms of capital cost (about R10,000), but in the long run, the fuel cost renders this option far more expensive. Diesel generators can present a safety risk and are a noise nuisance not allowed by many body corporates.”

Load shedding survival tips

Plan your activities and travel around anticipated load shedding.
Be creative with dinners and activities to keep yourself and your family entertained.
Have braais and set up a tent for the kids with a campfire, especially during this holiday period.
Invest in rechargeable emergency LED lights. They are bright enough to light up the room for homework and household activities.
One can also buy an inexpensive two-burner gas stove at any major retailer and cook using gas.
Load shedding affects the ability of the water utility to pump water, so make sure you have water stored in the house.
It also means no fibre to the home, so make sure your phone has data or airtime.
Carry cash, as some retailers are unable to take card payments.

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On 8 May South Africans won’t see a green party on the ballot paper. Instead, what they will see is political parties with lofty claims of bettering the South African environment and pushing the ‘Green Revolution’ for political gain.
Section 24 of the Constitution says that everyone has the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or well-being; and to have the environment protected, for the benefit of present and future generations, through reasonable legislative and other measures that prevent pollution and ecological degradation; promote conservation; and secure ecologically sustainable development and use of natural resources while promoting justifiable economic and social development.

Despite this, the EFF only has 18 points on environmental policies in its 170-page long manifesto. Similarly, the current ANC government’s manifesto makes fewer than 20 eco-friendly promises, including repositioning Eskom (again) and an investigation into the cost-benefit of installing solar panels in state buildings. 3

In comparison to the ANC and EFF, the DA has a far longer list of green policies and ideas included in its manifesto, although much of this includes examples of their successful implementation of green policies.

And while South Africans will have seen The Green Party of South Africa listed on ballots in the past, the party has struggled to garner any national support. Other than The Green Party, the United Democratic Front (UDM) has perhaps the most comprehensive policy on environmental affairs.

When speaking to Greenpeace, 350 Africa, Climate Reality and the Centre for Environmental Rights, all four environmental action groups reiterated that climate change is a reality that South Africans have to take seriously. The country’s environment is already being negatively impacted by the realities of global warming, and without a concrete commitment to environmental policies, South Africa may have little ‘green’ left to show the next generation.

Although US President Donald Trump has repeatedly tweeted about “clean coal”, environmentally-friendly mining is a myth. Despite this, the majority of political parties have committed to improving or expanding the current mining industry. 5

In South Africa in particular, mining has a long and controversial history.

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On 1st March 2019, the Select Committee on Finance invited Stakeholders and interested parties to submit written comments on the South African Carbon Tax Bill to be presented before the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) today, 12th March 2019. This was following the majority vote in Parliament in favour of the Bill on 19th February 2019. 
​
During the public hearing today, Tuesday 12th of March, in the old assembly in Cape Town, there were several submissions from industry associations, the business community as well as non-profit organisations. According to EcoMetrix Africa consultant, Thapelo Tladi, who closely followed the proceedings, tough opposition from stakeholder affected by the tax remains persistent. Most of the submissions however reiterated concerns already raised during prior stakeholder consultations. Overall most of the comments dealt with the anticipated social and economic impacts of the tax and practical matters concerning its implementation, including but not limited to the following: 
• The impact of the tax on electricity prices and how this would eventually lead to increased cost of doing business in South Africa 
• The promulgation of the Customs and Excise Amendment Bill which is required for the Carbon Tax bill to take effect 
• The alignment of the Carbon Tax with the Carbon Budget system as part of the Post-2020 Mitigation System and other climate change policies still in draft form or not yet formulated 
• The state of readiness of government institutions to implement, develop and monitor the impact of the tax was questioned with regards to emissions baseline data and costs of administration of the tax to the tax payers, among others 
• Ringfencing of carbon tax revenue and recycling to environmental programmes 

National Treasury and the Department of Environmental Affairs present during the public hearing responded to the submissions affirming that the current Bill was the result of an extensive stakeholder consultation process and that during this process issues raised were already addressed, making concessions and changes while going along. Nevertheless, various comments were responded to, again, during the hearing today. 

​Following the hearing, the NCOP will draw up a report with recommendations to be discussed next week at a plenary session, after which a vote on the bill will be made. If the council passes the bill as is, it will be submitted to the president for assent. However, If the NCOP passes the bill subject to amendments or rejects the bill, it will be sent back to the National Assembly which must reconsider the Bill, taking into account any amendment proposed by the Council. In case of the latter, further delays with implementation of the bill should be anticipated. 
Thapelo Tladi, consultant at EcoMetrix Africa comments that “the submissions made today regarding the Carbon Tax by various parties who will be directly or indirectly affected by the environmental levy is reflective of how complex the process to develop this bill has been. By all accounts many of the issues raised today are not new but nonetheless remain pertinent issues that business, NGOs, labour and industry associations require clarity on. However, the extent to which the issues raised would necessitate an amendment of the Bill remains to be seen, which will invariably have implications on when the bill is officially signed into law". 
For further information, please contact 
Mr Henk Sa 
Partner at EcoMetrix Africa T +27 78 459 5748 E henk.sa@ecometrix.net 
Mr Lodewijk Nell 
Partner at EcoMetrix Africa T +27 78 704 2678 E lodewijk.nell@ecometrix.net 

With more electricity disruptions likely to occur in the next few years as state utility Eskom struggles to meet demand, South Africa should look at concentrated solar power (CSP) technologies as an alternative when coal power stations fail, Stellenbosch University has said.

The university cited Dr Toyosi Craig, a project manager with AEE Power in Johannesburg who recently received his doctorate in industrial engineering at Stellenbosch, as saying mass deployments of CSP would not only provide clean and supporting energy to the grid, but also boost the local manufacturing of CSP components, support job creation and create an avenue to export electricity and know-how to neighbouring countries.

Craig said the future of CSP in South Africa looked bleak as the government’s recent Integrated Resource Plan updates gave no allocation to new CSP plants beyond 2030. 

“This is worrying given that South Africa wants to generate 42 percent of its electricity from renewable energy technology sources by 2030," he said.

He said if CSP was promoted, job losses due to the adoption of renewable energy would be reduced as experts from other conventional technologies could transfer their skills "with little or no training".

South African unions have slammed the government for signing deals with independent power producers on behalf of Eskom, saying these will threaten jobs in the coal sector, which still accounts for the bulk of the country's electricity.

“The cost of developing CSP is reducing, the technology is therefore going to be the major energy source of the future, and the nations who do not recognise these may lose out," Craig said.

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International Solar Alliance (ISA) on Sunday urged African states to tap solar energy to green their economies.
​ISA Program Ambassador Mohua Mukherjee told a media briefing in Nairobi that the bulk of African states are located along the sunshine belt with abundant solar energy resources.
"African countries should take advantage of declining cost of solar technology to achieve clean energy targets," Mukherjee said during the second global session of the United Nations Science, Policy and Business Forum on the environment.
The majority of the continent's residents are not connected to their national electricity grids, he said.
"This provides a great opportunity for Africans to use solar technology to power their electric appliances," she added.
The ISA will leverage on South-South cooperation to enable Africa benefit and borrow critical experiences from their peers in other developing countries so that they embrace solar technologies, Mukherjee said.
However, according to the global solar body, the high upfront cost remains a key barrier to driving uptake of solar technology among African households.
Mukherjee called for innovative technologies such as pay-as-you-go systems to ensure that the continent has access to solar equipment.
She said that by adopting solar technology, Africa can play a key role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Mukherjee said strong economic growth in Africa in the past decade has fueled demand for energy in the continent.
"It will be prudent for the region to choose green energy sources that will accelerate the drive towards low carbon development pathways," she said.

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A new study commissioned by the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA), against the backdrop of volatility and uncertainty in the current electricity landscape in SA, has revealed that the role of Distributed Generation Renewable Energy (DG-RE) in the SA electricity market is currently undervalued and that it has a significant role to play in supporting the delivery of clean, cost effective and reliable power to South African business.

Launched at the at Res4Med&Africa Innovation Conference in Cape Town on Monday, the
SAWEA study examined 14 different scenarios in five different SA municipalities. The study
found that wind and solar systems embedded in distribution networks could reduce
significant load on municipalities; lowering the price of electricity, preventing electrical
interruptions, reducing losses and providing an effective and efficient contribution to
resolving SA’s power crisis.

“Within the current regulatory environment, improvements in renewable energy technology
and falling prices are not reaching consumers directly and quickly enough and it is within this
context that the report should be considered,” says CEO of the South African Wind Energy
Association, Brenda Martin.

Distributed generation refers to a variety of technologies that generate electricity at or near
where it will be used, such as solar PV panels, wind and combined heat and power and may
or may not make use of existing electricity infrastructure for distribution to customers.

“Distributed generation can directly serve loads behind-the-meter as we have seen
increasingly in SA over the past years, but they can also make use of existing public network
infrastructure to supply offtakers that are not co-located with the energy plant. This type of
scheme presents a number of advantages at various levels, and this is what we wanted to
better understand through the study” explained Kevin Minkoff, chairperson of SAWEA’s
Technical Working Group.

He said Eskom tariff increases and continued struggles only strengthened the business case
for DG-RE plants and the role these could play in supporting the sustainable delivery of
power.

The report also highlights opportunities for investors. “This is an exciting time for current and
prospective investors in the growing South African renewable energy market,” said Martin.
“This is an important piece of work for entities interested in investment other than utility-scale
as it reveals opportunities and potential routes for corporate PPAs (power purchase
agreements) to step forward to become part of the solution to SA’s power woes by relieving
pressure on the grid.”

Minkoff explains that PPAs support the purchase of electricity at an agreed price for an
agreed period, typically 10-20 years. Instead of buying power directly from utilities (typically
state-owned as in SA), several businesses are now beginning to consider how to purchase
electricity from independent generators, as well as investing in generation assets
themselves – within the strict limits of the current regulatory framework.

“PPAs have economic and environmental advantages,” says Martin, adding that large
multinationals are beginning to apply their sustainability pledges to their global supply chains
and data centres, which has led to a significant uptick in corporate PPAs globally.

“However, in South Africa, current regulations are restricting the uptake of corporate PPAs.
To support growth of the industry, the SAWEA report calls for regulatory reforms to allow for
direct PPAs between municipalities and energy intensive users and details how this could
provide security of supply to heavy industry at lower tariffs,” said Martin.

“It important for local municipalities and utilities to revise planning methods, devise new
technical specifications and update commercial arrangements.”
Investing in DG-RE plants can help corporates to meet environmental targets, giving them
an instrument to evidence compliance with increasing climate change reporting and
corporate governance requirements.

Energy solutions company Novo Energy on Friday launched a R130-million large-scale natural gas compression facility at the Highveld industrial park, in eMalahleni, Mpumalanga.

The facility provides cleaner, and more reliable and cost-effective energy, compared with coal and other petroleum products.

At the launch, CEO Andri Hugo said the facility would play a significant role in helping to unlock South Africa’s power constraints, while also reducing carbon intensity.

“South Africa is a coal-based economy with about 77% of electricity generated from coal and a large portion of transportation fuels derived from the same source. Add to that the large percentage of industrial processes that use coal and you have an entire industrial sector built around cheap coal and electricity.

“But we depend heavily on imported resources for our hydrocarbon supply and this has resulted in exposure to international energy supply uncertainty, issues of reliability and price volatility,” he pointed out.

He added that although South Africa’s gas market is small, accounting for only 3% of the energy mix, the inherent benefits have the potential to change the economy by stimulating economic growth, development stability and job creation.

“Africa has been blessed with an abundance of resources, including minerals, energy, natural resources and human capital. A combination of these, through industrial activity, can address most of the socioeconomic challenges we face.

“Natural gas will play an important role in our energy mix through power generation, thermo-industrial applications and transportation and the vast natural gas discoveries on the continent will provide the key to unlocking our gas economies,” Hugo further pointed out.

Novo business development manager Justin Austin, meanwhile, said natural gas was the simplest hydrocarbon available, making it suitable as a feedstock for fertilisers, plastics and energy applications.

Natural gas can also be used as a heating fuel for industrial, commercial and residential applications, steam generation and direct heating applications, natural gas-run vehicles and power generation, he pointed out.

The eMalahleni gas compression station is Novo’s thirteenth – and its largest – such facility.

Austin said the most important application for natural gas going forward would be for power generation in remote locations, especially for remote mines that do not have grid accessibility and are using diesel as an energy source.

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