South Africa

The European Commission has published its second annual assessment of the competitiveness of the EU’s renewable energy technology industries, and it had a warning for policymakers about the trade balance trend being experienced by heat pump makers.

The pilot system was built with the Hydrelio floating platforms developed by French specialist Ciel&Terre. The project performance will be evaluated during a full seasonal weather cycle.

In what is being described by its developer as a national first, a 10 MW solar plant in the Northern Cape will generate power for the local business of Amazon Web Services, with the solar electricity to be delivered via the grid operated by national utility Eskom.

The funds should be allocated through multilateral and bilateral grants, concessional loans, guarantees and private investments. A task force will now seek to identify initial sources of financing for the electricity and coal mining sectors, as well as financing options for the development of electromobility and green hydrogen.

The South African authorities have published the list of the preferred bidders of the fifth round of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Program (REIPPPP). Around 2.58 GW of renewable energy capacity was allocated through the procurement exercise.

The latest edition of a clean power jobs survey produced by IRENA and the International Labour Organization has stressed the important role which will need to be played by the public sector if the energy transition’s employment benefits are to be shared equally.

With an initial capacity of 100 MW, the plant will supply more than 100 million kWh a year to countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region, helping to reduce load shedding by providing much needed power at peak times.

Platinum group metals mining giant Anglo American Platinum (Amplants) has selected Pele Green Energy and EDF Renewables South Africa as the preferred developers to build a 100 MW solar PV plant in South Africa.

The South African Department of Mineral Resources launched a tech-neutral procurement process for 2 GW of capacity in August 2020 in response to a chronic short-term electricity supply gap in the country.

The float can host conventional solar modules with a 120-cell design, a power output of over 400 W, and a weight not exceeding 30kg. It is being developed by South Africa-based Phelan Energy Group, in Dubai.