Anton Eberhard
@AntonEberhard
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Energy policy & investment specialist & advisor. Professor Emeritus, Power Futures Lab, GSB, University of Cape Town
Joined August 2011
I went to the official opening of South Africa’s largest solar PV (540MW) and battery (225MW/1140MWh) plant today near Keinhardt in the N Cape. Seriously impressive, 9 km from one end to the other, nearly 1 million panels, R18 bn investment, built by Scatec in 15 months.
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We forget Ramaphosa has been president for only 3 months. So much already achieved:.* New Eskom Board & implicated execs out.* New Transnet Board.* New Denel Board & CEO out.* New PRASA Board.* SARS Tom Monyane out.* SSA Arthur Fraser out.* Supra’s NW Province taken over. .
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Pravin Gordhan survived three brutal detentions by the apartheid security police. He survived the dirty tactics of the Hawks & State Security Agency orchestrated by Zuma. He’ll survive the pidly propoganda and lies of the EFF. Time for cabinet colleagues to stand up & be counted.
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In tweeting this cartoon @helenzille aptly captures the poverty of her liberalism: always seeking to make a “principled” point but without sensitivity to context & 🇿🇦’s painful history. The DA is dead. What we need is effective modern social democracy not this liberal ideology.
This aptly captures the fallacy and racism behind race generalizations.
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I don’t think South Africa’s national utility Eskom has ever before invoked stage 4 load shedding. I hate that term. What it means is they’re cutting power for lots of us because they can’t keep their power stations operating. They’re effectively a monopoly. We need more options.
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South Africa would not be experiencing loadshedding now if @Eskom_SA’s newest 4800MW coal power stations - Medupi & Kusile - were working properly. This is the latest mishap at Kusile. Currently only two out of six units there are producing electricty. Construction began in 2008
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We’ve seen trucks transporting coal in South Africa when it should be on rail, but trucks taking manganese from the Northern Cape all the way down to Eastern Cape ports. Come on, Transnet, get your act together.
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I’ve read the 90+ page charge sheet against ex @Eskom_SA CEO Matshela Koko. Impulse International received more than R1 billion in Kusile contracts and then at least R80m was paid to his wife and her daughters’ trusts and accounts. Tragic that he drew them into this corrupt web.
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Ethiopian flights from Addis this Saturday morning in a 90 minute period, all over the African continent and further abroad. How many flights does South African Airways have this morning? That’s the legacy of Ex Prez Zuma, ministers Gigaba and Brown and SAA board chair Dudu Myeni
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After years of economic sabotage by Zuma's administration, Ramaphosa's Energy Minister @radebe_jeff - in the job only a week - liberates R56 billion investment in 27 renewable energy projects, 58% equity owned by South Africans, huge black shareholding
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I'm outraged that journalists report without evaluation the false EFF narrative that Pravin Gordhan facilitated state capture and is corrupt. This is breathtakingly Trumpian: the truth is portrayed as fake news and fake news as truth. South Africans applaud his honesty & bravery
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At a press briefing today, @Eskom_SA’s CEO reminded South Africans that the last government power generation procurement programme that has added capacity to the grid was conducted in 2014 and that his predecessor CEOs blocked and delayed the IPP programme for a number of years.
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SA’s energy minister Mantashe shows he’s completely out of touch with the realities of the South African economy by claiming we only experience load shedding at night (as part of his argument that solar doesn’t really help & we need “baseload”).Businesses are suffering, minister!.
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Namibia opens its power market so that IPPs can sell directly to customers. Way to go
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My first sight today of Africa’s first concentrated solar power plant outside Uppington - Khi Solar One 50MW with a 200m tower surrounded by 4200 tracking reflective solar mirrors.
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Only 860MW awarded out of 4200MW offered in SA’s 6th renewable energy auction due to transmission constraints. An independent transmission company would have planned, raised capital & invested in time to facilitate access. Slow progress in unbundling has consequences. Mr Gordhan?
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Koeberg Unit 2 finally back online after unprecedented 9 month outage when @Eskom_SA didn’t even replace its steam generators, now the oldest globally. Replacement first motivated in 2008 but delayed through disastrous procurement. SG tube failures could compromise safety
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“Of the 5,749 state employees referred for disciplinary action, 5,000 are Eskom employees, most of whom did not declare their financial interests. Of those, 135 own companies that secured a collective R6bn for doing business with the ailing power utility.”.@SundayTimesZA
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The private sector is gearing up to rescue South Africa from power cuts with a huge pipeline of generation projects under advanced development. Now the state has to play its part by getting transmission out of a failing Eskom & allowing investment to flow
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Wow! @Eskom_SA today admitted that it’s staff colluded with illicit operators in fraudulent sales of prepaid electricity tokens and electricity theft reached 13.9 TWh in FY23/24 which is MORE than the 13.2 TWh lost in loadshedding. Why wasn’t this picked up earlier?
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The chair of the @StateCaptureCom allows Brian Molefe to make a long, untested political statement attacking President @CyrilRamaphosa, international capital and even myself! Classic strategy - create an alternative narrative to try and confuse very serious corruption charges
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As electricity minister @Kgosientsho_R spends more time understanding @Eskom_SA’s challenges, his diagnoses begin to approximate those of ex-CEO Andre de Ruyter.It’s positive having a dedicated minister actively championing remedial actions
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Cape Town-based Golden Arrow Bus Services (GABS) is planning to introduce 60 electric buses to its fleet every year starting in 2024 until it has replaced its full fleet of 1,100 diesel-powered people haulers.
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Some crazy stuff going through cabinet in South Africa - PetroSA signing up Russia’s Gazprom rather than TotalEnergies, which has adjacent offshore gas for its Mossel Bay gas-to-liquid fuels plant, and now a procurement of a .catastrophically expensive 2500MW nuclear power plant
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I have a great deal of respect for Pravin Gordhan, his anti-apartheid record, and fight against state capture, but this critique of Andre de Ruyter is shameful. To end power cuts SA also needs MORE investment in new generation capacity. AdR got that!.
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As Eskom runs out of power & the lights go off in South Africa, tomorrow the Coal Transporters Forum will ask the High Court to block independent power producers. Gatvol electricity users will see this for what it is: narrow interests working against those of the majority.
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Some try to undermine the notion of state capture but let's remember that its modus operandi was to destroy governance so thieves could move in. @Eskom_SA had 9 CEOs in 9 Zuma years. Then CEOs Hadebe & Mabuza resigned after short stints. Let's hope de Ruyter is given time.
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Can’t Brian Molefe see how obscene it is to fight for a pension payout of R30 million for only 18 months work at @Eskom_SA ? His chutzpah and lack of shame is beyond belief
Former Eskom CEO - Molefe - is making an application for leave to appeal the judgment over pension payout.
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Last night during Eskom load-shedding I looked outside: darkness everywhere, except a few homes which were fully lit. This morning I see that each of those houses has solar PV on their roofs (and batteries, presumably). Solar works, peeps, it works just fine 😊
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Despite1 Koeberg + 3 Kusile units, totaling nearly 3GW, connecting to the grid in recent weeks, @Eskom_SA continues to shed 4-6GW load. Who still believes the spin that the utility is being turned around? Meanwhile new power auctions delayed 😳😖
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In a conference Q&A yesterday I asked SA’s energy minister to clarify his 3pt plan to end loadshedding. He was unable to explain:.1) how he’d fix @Eskom_SA’s “idle” generators;.2) additional imports;.3) why, after 4 yrs in the job, he’s not procured least cost LNG power projects.
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South Africa’s national power utility @Eskom_SA would be better advised to remedy the depressing lack of care of its kit, revealed in ex-CEO Andre de Ruyter’s book, rather than wasting its energy trying to trash him. We want electricty not vendettas
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Cape Town’s largest dam, Theewaterskloof, January 2018 and now. Tomorrow’s rains could fill it 100%
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3 ex @Eskom_SA CEOs have much to say about fixing SA’s power utility:.* Maroga who faced Board sanctions & ran to Zuma for protection.* Molefe who resigned after being exposed by the Public Protector.* Koko who fled a disciplinary hearing and, with Molefe, was condemned by Zondo
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Minister @GwedeMantashe1 failed today to gazette his Sec34 determination to procure 11,800MW IRP planned power.50 days since NERSA concurrence.7 months since draft determination.11 months since IRP gazetted.17 months already as Energy Minister.20 months after stage 6 power cuts.
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Flew into Johannesburg this morning after trip abroad with my 17 yr old daughter. Immigration official demands unabridged birth certificate, copy of mother’s passport and travel consent. I asked had he not heard president’s announcement. No he says. Come on @mgigaba sort this out.
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My @SundayTimesZA oped is now free to read. I reveal Gwede Mantashe’s culpability in loadshedding and argue why it would be a grave mistake to transfer the governance of @Eskom_SA to the energy ministry.
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2021 load shedding by South Africa’s national power utility @Eskom_SA is worst ever. Chart by Jarrad Wright
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SA’s energy minister constantly derides Eskom_SA CEO Andre de Ruyter who is bravely taking on corruption at the power utility. Eskom is not even in the minister’s portfolio. If this is aimed at hastening AdR’s resignation he may just succeed. And then?
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Cape Town leads by allowing consumers to export and sell back to the grid. With my rooftop solar + battery system, my summer electricity bills are negative and offset my municipal rates bill. Now its’ possible to get cash back. @geordinhl 👏🏽
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Has anyone told SA’s energy minister that none of the country’s coastal refineries are operational?.
'We should consider importing crude oil from Russia' - Mantashe tells Parly
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Refreshing to have a leader like Andre de Ruyter, CEO of @Eskom_SA, stating clearly that solar and wind are now the most competitive power options and, coupled with storage, will assist South Africa to decarbonize its power sector. Energy ministry needs to catch up.
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Here's @Eskom_SA's estimate of how much rooftop solar PV has been added (cumulatively) in South Africa. It reduce the residual load that Eskom has to meet during the day, meaning less load shedding and more available energy to restore its pumped hydro and diesel storage.
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Lots of evidence presented at State Capture Commission today confirming ex @Eskom_SA executive Matshela Koko was in cahoots with corruption accused Gupta associate Salim Essa, now a fugitive from justice, hiding abroad
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It’s 4.20pm in Cape Town, high clouds, my batteries are more or less full and solar system is pushing 2.5kW back into the grid. Imagine a million homes doing this. We’d be avoiding 3 stages of @Eskom_SA load-shedding. (Australia already has nearly 3 million solar homes)
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Parliament’s Eskom Inquiry not done yet. Dudu Myeni will be called this Wednesday. While in Zuma’s residence she ‘instructed’ ex Eskom chair Zola Tsotsi to fire Eskom executives. Malusi Gigaba (who gutted Eskom’s Board) has been asked to appear on 6 March & Ben Ngubane on 7th 🔥.
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Minister @tito_mboweni, in the absence your tweets on chicken recipes on this public holiday, this: garlic, ginger, butter & olive oil, browned chicken breasts & then slow cooked with diced tomatoes & coconut cream; creamed spinach. So simple. Wine: Chocolate Block ‘17 5* a steal
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Brian Molefe and Matshela Koko not off the hook as the Special Investigation Unit probes the corrupt “pre-financing” arranged under their watch at @Eskom_SA that enabled the Gupta fugitives to buy Optimum Coal Mine
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Roggeveld Wind Farm in the Karoo is the latest utility-scale renewable energy project to connect to @Eskom_SA’s grid, also amongst the cheapest. Developed by a Cape Town based company. Significant black ownership. Small/medium companies can compete in SA power market.
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In May 2019 @GwedeMantashe1 was appointed South Africa’s energy minister. Under the Electricty Regulation Act he has extradinary powers to procure new generation and end power cuts yet in nearly 5 yrs only 150 MW has come online from his procurements 😳. Total demand is 25000MW!
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The 60 days given by President @CyrilRamaphosa to energy minister @GwedeMantashe1 to publish "a final version of the amendment to Schedule 2" of the Electricity Regulation Act to exempt power projects up to 100MW from NERSA licensing expires today. Nothing published.
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Who said renewables don’t make a difference? Wind energy shaving up to 2GW off evening peak and avoiding 2 stages of loadshedding in South Africa. @Eskom_SA daily report:.Evening Peak 23/06/2023 (17:55).Eskom Available Generation: 28704 MW.Renewable Generation: 1988 MW
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The international deadline for migration of analogue to digital TV was 2015. South Africa has still not got there, forgoing the digital dividend (faster cheaper internet) that comes with freeing up radio spectrum. Ranks right up there with failures in implementing new power plans.
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Jeez, I’m tired of this BS. The reason for Eskom’s financial distress is not IPPs (their cost is entirely passed through in regulated tariffs that fully compensate Eskom). Its losses are because of disastrous cost overruns for its Medupi/Kusile power stations, coal and payroll.
#Eskom is projecting over R11Bn loss by the end of the year but they will pay renewable energy IPPs over R20billion. This is madness.
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Pravin Gordhan, @Eskom_SA’s shareholder minister, parachuted Andre de Ruyter into its CEO seat. Now, after the latter’s criticism of the ANC, he disses him. And his mask slips: it’s all coal now, no real belief in a just energy transition.
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For those who still think it somehow undignified for an ex head of state and @MYANC leader to face prosecution think about the damage to our institutions over the past 10 years and that our economy and citizens’ wealth could have been 50% greater today.
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South Africa's power market is being transformed. Here’s what’s happening 1/.* Generation licences are no longer required. New Elec Reg Act Sch2, to be gazetted in Sept/Oct, will clarify this. Neither the Energy Minister nor NERSA are now gatekeepers of market entry /1.
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Two years ago it would have been inconceivable to hear an @Eskom_SA CEO highlight the advantages of solar and wind energy. Great to see evidence-based strategies emerging. A presentation by Andre de Ruyter to the President's Climate Commission this morning.
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Matshela Koko, ex @Eskom_SA CEO, hypocritically dissed Independent Power Producers in South Africa while developing a solar IPP in Zimbabwe. No-one will finance his projects now. Koko was in court today facing a 90+ page charge sheet on fraud and corruption.
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19 333 MW of @Eskom_SA coal plant broken. A new record? The performance of South Africa’s national power utility continues to decline despite the efforts of the new electricity minister.
#POWERALERT1. Stage 6 loadshedding will be implemented from 16:00 this afternoon until further notice
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Despite the bluster and denials from the Energy Ministry, @TotalEnergies has confirmed that they are abandoning South Africa’s only offshore gas discovery - block 11B/12B off Mossel Bay which means the PetroSA’s gas to petrol plant remains idle and @Eskom_SA cannot convert its.
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Batteries for Africa. Scatec’s 225MW/1140MWh battery installation near Kenhardt in the Northern Cape enables the grid to be powered even after the sun goes down
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S Africa’s @Eskom_SA shareholder minister needs to explain why he has not strengthened the power utility’s board (it has no engineers, CA’s or anyone with large corporate experience) and why, 6m after the deadline to unbundle Transmission, he has not appointed its board
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Fact checked. AfricaCheck confirms that Eskom is overstaffed and that its average salary package is R696,000 pa, while selling less electricity than 10 years ago. Here's my table based on Eskom Annual Reports. And that's BEFORE this year's salary hike
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It's rare these days to see performance improvements in South Africa's state-owned enterprises so great to see these results today from power utility @Eskom_SA . Revenue, profits, cash, debt service cover ratio all up.
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Power cuts in South Africa in the first 4 months of 2023 are already greater than all of 2022, which in turn was 4.5x greater than 2021. When we think it can’t get much worse, it does .@uminnaar
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Coal conveyor and silo at the Majuba power station of South Africa’s national utility @Eskom_SA on fire. Someone tell me how this is possible. Sabotage? Latest: fire now extinguished
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Zambia has just announced the results of its latest solar PV auction. Winning bids were < US$ 4c/kWh. That’s equivalent to ZAR 56c/kWh. And that was for a 20MW plant in a challenging investment climate. No question now REIPPP 5 in South Africa will deliver below 50c, half Eskom.
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A total of 23 800 MW offline. That has to be an @Eskom_SA record. It’s not getting better.
#POWERALERT1. Due to the breakdown of five generating units overnight, Stage 5 loadshedding will regretfully be implemented until 05:00 on Monday
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Johannesburg’s City Power failed to collect R5 billion in electricity sales in the previous financial year. Contrast that with Cape Town’s nearly 100% collection rate
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Nine months after @Eskom_SA operators destroyed unit 4 at the utility’s new Medupi power station, they have still not been fired. 790MW was taken off the grid, exacerbating load shedding. It will take 3 years and R2.5billion to fix.
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There is an obvious conflict of interest for the energy ministry to be @Eskom_SA’s shareholder while also overseeing competition and regulation in the sector. Eskom unbundling and private investment will slow and load-shedding will continue.
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It’s taken @Eskom_SA seven weeks to take the simple step of advertising for a new CEO after Andre de Ruyter resigned in mid-December. In the midst of a power crisis, it will be months before a new CEO is in place!
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Pravin Gordhan’s stellar reputation (courageous anti-apartheid & state capture fighter, SARS, NT, etc) is in tatters. The collapse of SAA’s sale exposes his malicious compliance restructuring SOEs, saying he’s doing it but ideologically opposed & incompetent. Also Eskom, Transnet
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Code red. South Africa’s power system outlook for the year ahead, published by @Eskom_SA . If you’ve not yet bought your home or business solar PV + battery system yet, now’s the time
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The Cape Town control room of @ScatecASA where a staff of 180 (95% South African) monitor and control the performance of every string of solar PV panels in 36 projects in Malaysia, South Africa, Egypt, Middle East, Central and South America. A huge success story.
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Just gets worse and worse! Zola Tsotsi says Salim Essa gave him list people to appoint to Eskom Board positions. He gave different list to Minister Brown for approval but list that came back to him from Minister was same as Essa’s. #EskomInquiry.
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Government does not yet appear to grasp the enormity of SA’s power crisis. Current generation shortage is 6GW. And around half of @Eskom_SA’s coal power stations will be retired over next 15 years. At least 50GW of new capacity will need to be built.
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.@Eskom_SA's COO Jan Oberholzer speaking today on the loss of skills at Koeberg. Scary. Capetonians won't be sleeping well. The nuclear power plant is only 30km up the coast.
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Now we see the consequences of Parliament’s dilatory impeachment of South Africa’s Public Protector who is now investigating legitimate contracts with Independent Power Producers. This will be hugely damaging to President @CyrilRamaphosa’s investment drive and SA energy security.
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Five of Cape Town's six largest dams are fuller than 90%. Berg River dam below is full. Cape Town has respite from three unprecedented drought years. Now is the time for investments to make the city more water resilient. We need to make sure our local politicians follow through
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Andre de Ruyter, @Eskom_SA’s CEO, made a significant announcement in this morning’s press briefing that Eskom is expecting imminent approval from the National Electricity Crisis Committee to open the utility’s internal power pool to private day ahead trading. Learning by doing!
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1/ @Eskom_SA’s CEO de Ruyter, at briefing today, says more urgency from government could alleviate up to 2 stages of loadshedding:.1) increasing generation cap on existing IPP contracts .2) approving Eskom’s standard offer to small generators (approved 6 months ago by its Board).
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Approval times for rooftop solar systems in Cape Town will now take days rather than months with the launch of an online portal. And costs for bi-directional meters will soon be slashed by half. Now to lift export limits. Mayor @geordinhl working thru reform list 👏🏽
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South Africa’s national utility is implementing rolling power cuts again as power units at its new coal power station - Medupi - fail as well as breakages in older plant. “All our eggs are in Eskom’s basket. When they drop the economy breaks”. Time to diversify our power system.
NOTICE: Eskom will implement stage 2 of loadshedding from 1pm this afternoon until 10pm tonight. The power system is constrained due to a number of breakdowns. Apologies for the inconvenience that this will cause.
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Coal trucks queuing to deliver coal to Majuba. Like other @Eskom_SA power stations should be supplied cheaply via conveyor belts from adjacent coal mine. @chrisyelland documents disastrous project management failures @dailymaverick .
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After more than 5 months of lockdown in Cape Town, went on a road trip with my daughter along lesser known roads in the Western Cape. Great to be out again and some lovely, safe overnight stays in beautiful farm cottages
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At last: @Eskom_SA & Special Investigations Unit issue summons for recovery of R3.8 billion against Gupta’s, ex Eskom executives Molefe, Singh, Koko & Daniels, ex Eskom directors Ngubane, Mabude, Pamensky, & ex minerals minister Zwane in Tegeta Optimum heist.
#Eskom #MediaStatement. Eskom and the SIU initiate steps to recoup funds from former executives lost to State Capture corruption
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Cape Town starts buying excess solar power from residents – here’s how to apply
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A number of mining industries in South Africa want to generate their own power but many can’t because of hold-ups in NERSA licences and Ministry permissions. Crazy. If we’re serious about economic growth, we need regulatory reform in the power sector. The lights are going off.
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I hate to be a Cassandra but there is little to celebrate with this @Eskom_SA Kusile mega Coal Power Station, the final unit coming online only now, 17 years after the Final Investment Decision was taken in 2008, costing nearly 3 times its original budget and a site of major.
#EskomMediaStatement . Eskom adds 800MW of new capacity to the grid for the first time with the addition of Kusile Power Station's final unit to the national grid.
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My 51 year old car turned its odometer from 99999 miles back to 00000 today. 2nd or 3rd time? Not sure, as I’ve not had this car from new. I do all the maintenance myself. Still going strong. Now for Eskom 😊🧐
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Ex @Eskom_SA CEO and corruption accused Matshela Koko sued an old lady for R500,000 but ended up losing and paying much more for his and her legal costs. An expensive attempt to silence public critique.
We successfully represented a 72 year old grandmother and preschool teacher, in a #SLAPP defamation suit brought by former Eskom CEO, Mr Matshela Koko. The Court found the claim was an abuse of process, and client was was awarded costs on a punitive scale. Full judgment 1/2
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ANC Chairman @GwedeMantashe1 says he won’t cede his energy procurement powers to new electricity minister Sputla @Kgosientsho_R and ANC SG @MbalulaFikile says they will give President @CyrilRamaphosa “marching orders”. Who’s in charge here?
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