The South African mining industry is planning to develop 2GW of new renewable energy capacity to supplement its energy requirements as the industry decries Eskom’s increasingly costly electricity and inconsistent supply. The revelation was made by the CEO of the Minerals Council South Africa, Roger Baxter during a virtual panel discussion hosted by the Presidential Climate Change Commission last week.
“Our members have already indicated that they are planning to invest in about 2 GW of renewable energy, supplementary embedded generation. That is going to cost something between R30 billion and R40 billion,” Baxter said.
“Eskom simply can’t provide that extra power, we have had the discussion with them. That power will obviously not only assist the national grid and ourselves, but also contribute towards the decarbonisation of the economy over time,” he added.
South Africa’s mining industry celebrated the new energy reforms being implemented by the government including the lifting of licensing exemption threshold for embedded generation systems from 10 MW to 100 MW. The Minerals Council indicated that it is in consultation with the government regarding potential solutions to South Africa’s energy challenges.
“The 100 MW (licensing exemption threshold) is not something that the government just suddenly came up with. There was a lot of activity via the industry and the minerals council to make sure we could demonstrate this would be a game changer for South Africa going forward,” said Roger Baxter, CEO of Minerals Council.
South Africa is the world’s 12th-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases. The adoption of renewable energy by South Africa’s massive mining industry will be crucial to the country’s decarbonisation plans and will help the country meet its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Africa’s most industrialised nation plans to eliminate about 420 megatons of carbon dioxide annually by 2030.
The Minerals Council says it supports South Africa’s ambitious annual emission targets but raised caution that the targets must not disrupt electricity supply and energy security. The industry also committed to help meet the targets by ensuring it pioneers green hydrogen.
“The recently Cabinet approved Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) provides for a more ambitious target for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions. However, the Minerals Council does not see that the increased immediate-term risks related to this ambitious target are being adequately addressed, especially risks to electricity supply,” Baxter said.