South Africa\u2019s government is processing applications for projects to produce 9,789 megawatts of renewable energy, the nation\u2019s environment minister said.<\/p>\n
The requests are for plants that would generate 2,899 megawatts of solar photovoltaic power and 6,890 megawatts of wind energy, Barbara Creecy said in an emailed copy of a speech to lawmakers on Friday. Many of those projects include battery storage systems and transmission and distribution infrastructure, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are working hard to cut the red tape and get these projects finalized,\u201d Creecy said. \u201cWe have reduced our decision making time frames from 107 days to 57 days.\u201d<\/p>\n
The applications come after President Cyril Ramaphosa abolished a limit on the size of power plants private companies can have built for their own use amid the country\u2019s worst-ever outages. The total is equivalent to almost a third of South Africa\u2019s current electricity demand, which state utility Eskom is failing to meet. Instead, rotational power cuts \u2014 load shedding \u2014 of more than 10 hours a day are being imposed.<\/p>\n
A major constraint to the projects being added to the grid is the lack of adequate transmission infrastructure. Creecy said 15 environmental impact assessments on transmission and environmental infrastructure projects are being considered.<\/p>\n
The power crisis has led to calls for South Africa to extend the lives of some of its aging coal-fired plants. Electricity generated from coal accounts for more than 80% of South Africa\u2019s power and is the main reason the country is the world\u2019s 14th-biggest producer of greenhouse gases.<\/p>\n
\u201cConcern has been expressed that as we battle load shedding, we are considering delays in decommissioning aging coal-fired power stations,\u201d Creecy said. \u201cCurrent modeling will advise how we balance our decommissioning schedule so we can achieve energy security within the context of our climate change commitments and air quality improvement.\u201d<\/p>\n