South Africa Plans To Connect 8GW Of Wind And Solar Energy To The Grid Each Year

The global energy transition is witnessing impressive progress in renewable energy, and on 2 June 2023, South Africa's current roll-out of solar and wind power to increase its share of the country's energy mix from 7% to 40% by 2030 is the fastest way out of the electricity crisis and the cheapest option for building the energy sector South Africa needs to uphold its global climate commitments, according to the country's Presidential Climate Commission (PCC).

The PCC, which was set up by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in 2020 to advise on issues such as a just energy transition, released a series of recommendations for South Africa's electricity planning on June 1. The PCC said South Africa aims to feed at least 8GW of wind and solar energy into the grid each year for the next two to four years to address the power crisis. Some 2.5GW of new renewable energy projects are now registered with South Africa's national energy regulator. Experience shows that this target is achievable in the first three months of 2023. Ultimately, South Africa will need an additional 50 to 60 GW of renewable energy by 2030, according to Steve Nicholls, Head of Mitigation at PCC and Climate Change Advisor at the National Business Initiative. This would bring the share of renewable energy in South Africa's energy mix to around 40 per cent, according to Steve Nicholls, head of mitigation at the PCC and climate change adviser at the National Business Initiative. According to the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), coal-fired power generation will account for around 80% of electricity generation by 2022, with renewables (excluding hydro) accounting for 7%.

The PCC drafted these proposals in response to comments from the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy on a revised Integrated Resources Plan (IRP) 2019, which the department intends to submit to Cabinet in the second half of 2023.The IRP 2019 sets out South Africa's power procurement plan to 2030, calling for the retirement of around 12GW of coal-fired generation by 2030 and the expansion of the same timeframe by 18GW of private sector-led renewables, but the PCC's proposals suggest that 18GW of renewables will not meet South Africa's energy needs by 2030. In its recommendations for the revised plan, the PCC calls for the IRP to be able to maximise the use of renewable energy in the grid.