Title: South Africa’s continuing electricity challenges: Electricity minister highlights precarious power grid reliability
Introduction :
South Africa faces many challenges in the electricity sector, and recently the Minister of Electricity, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, spoke about the difficulties in ending frequent power cuts. Despite Eskom’s efforts, the fleet of power plants remains unreliable, making it impossible to immediately eliminate the load-shedding phenomenon.
Unreliable power plants:
At a press conference, Minister Ramokgopa stressed that the government cannot promise an end to power cuts in the near future due to the instability of production units. Power plants continue to fail, requiring the implementation of load-shedding to avoid greater damage to the grid.
The need for private investment:
The minister said Eskom’s current financing capacity is insufficient to meet the growing demand for electricity. He advocated for private investment to solve these problems. The Minister now has the power to request information and proposals for the financing of new transmission lines and to develop financing models in collaboration with the Treasury and the Presidency.
The transition to renewable energies:
Minister Ramokgopa also highlighted the need for a transition to renewable energy to reduce dependence on traditional power plants. He called for an intensification of the expansion of transmission lines, with a target of building 14,000 km of lines by 2032 to allow new players in the sector to contribute to the network.
Conclusion :
The electricity situation in South Africa remains complex, with regular power cuts and precarious network reliability. Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa acknowledged these challenges and called for increased private investment, expansion of transmission lines and transition to renewable energy to improve the situation and enable a more reliable and sustainable electricity supply.