DA backs energy minister Joemat-Pettersson’s ‘bold’ integrated resources plans
The DA’s welcoming stance on the government’s energy and resources plans differs sharply with the views of the renewable-energy sector
The DA said on Tuesday it welcomed and backed the "bold and transformative" integrated energy and integrated resource plans announced by Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson. The view of party energy spokesman Gordon Mackay differs sharply from that of the renewable-energy sector, which objected to the limited role given to renewable energy in the plans. Mackay said the plans dealt a serious blow to President Jacob Zuma’s nuclear ambitions. He understood the reports to be saying SA would not need additional nuclear baseload capacity until the mid-2030s, and that the nuclear requirement would not come close to the 9.6 GW of extra nuclear base load capacity being pursued by Eskom. "In practice, this means that the procurement process for nuclear can be postponed until at least the early 2020s," Mackay said. His view was contrary to that of Eskom generation head Matshela Koko, who said Eskom would need 1,359 MW of fresh nuclear power on the grid by 2025 and had to start commissioning...
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