The wide-scale adoption of renewable-energy projects throughout South Africa will result in a more cost-effective and cleaner national energy supply, says renewable-energy development and management company G7 Renewable Energies.
“About 20 years ago, the renewables debate was about environmental considerations and whether it was necessary to introduce cleaner forms of electricity generation,” explains G7 Renewable Energies MD Kilian Hagemann.
However, he adds that now the growing global popularity of renewables is enabling original-equipment manufacturers to lower the costs associated with renewable-energy equipment through economies of scale and efficiency improvements.
For instance, the shift towards competitive auctions worldwide has accelerated the product development cycles of turbine manufacturers in the wind industry, with manufacturers producing bigger and more efficient models – which allow for a lower cost of electricity and hence greater competitiveness – every year, Hagemann explains.
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“About 20 years ago, the renewables debate was about environmental considerations and whether it was necessary to introduce cleaner forms of electricity generation,” explains G7 Renewable Energies MD Kilian Hagemann.
However, he adds that now the growing global popularity of renewables is enabling original-equipment manufacturers to lower the costs associated with renewable-energy equipment through economies of scale and efficiency improvements.
For instance, the shift towards competitive auctions worldwide has accelerated the product development cycles of turbine manufacturers in the wind industry, with manufacturers producing bigger and more efficient models – which allow for a lower cost of electricity and hence greater competitiveness – every year, Hagemann explains.
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He says, while opponents of wind and solar energy have been outraged by reports that State-owned power utility Eskom is paying independent power producers (IPPs) an estimated R2/kWh – which applies to less than 5% of the total installed generation in the country – supporters of renewables point out that these costs have come down to R0.6/kWh over five bidding rounds under the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Plan (REIPPPP).
Hagemann adds that the first round of renewable projects procured in 2011 are being paid more than the reported R2/kWh, while the third-round facilities are being paid less, reiterating that the uptake costs for renewable projects are continually decreasing.
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Hagemann adds that the first round of renewable projects procured in 2011 are being paid more than the reported R2/kWh, while the third-round facilities are being paid less, reiterating that the uptake costs for renewable projects are continually decreasing.
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