Support from banks for SA’s coal ambitions dwindles
Standard Bank will no longer fund construction of fossil fuel power plants but will consider new mines
A decision by one of the traditional big four banks to stop financing certain types of fossil-fuel based energy generation projects provides yet another sign that it might become even harder for SA to achieve the future energy mix envisaged in the Integrated Resources Plan 2019 (IRP 2019) than the authors of this plan might have anticipated.
Published by the department of mineral resources & energy, the IRP 2019 budgets on 3,000MW of gas power and a further 1,500MW of coal-fired power generation to be added to SA’s energy mix by 2030. This would not be a particularly large coal power station compared with Kusile and Medupi that will, once the plants become fully operational, have capacity to generate 4,800MW each. However, it does serve as an indication of the country’s reliance on coal and gas as sources of fuel for at least the next 40 years, the projected lifespan of new coal-fired plants...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.