Energy: Power parley
Numerous suggestions on how to improve the draft Integrated Resource Plan were made at the first round of public consultations. Most of them were heavily in favour of more renewables
Speakers at the department of energy’s public hearings in Johannesburg on its recently released draft energy plans have taken issue with the exclusion of certain technologies from the plan. In particular they point to the exclusion of solar power (CSP) and co-generation and suspiciously short timelines for consultation. There were also some pungent criticisms of Eskom after the utility’s refusal to sign new power-purchase agreements for renewable energy, as it says the power is not available when it is needed. The draft updated Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), sketching a proposed energy mix to 2050, was published on November 22 with an updated Integrated Energy Plan (IEP) focusing on electricity, gas and liquid fuels. The updated plans have taken into account carbon-emissions constraints and job creation potential. The public hearings being held around the country are intended to invite criticisms and further suggestions, leading to a scenario analysis and a final plan. The first se...
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