SA government defends its use of coal as pro-poor
Deputy energy minister says SA does not have the luxury of choice when many people do not have access to power
Deputy energy minister Thembisile Majola expects the latest round of climate talks will make global markets cleaner starting in 2019 and defended SA’s coal use as a way to reduce poverty. “With the Germans, they can say ‘We’re moving from driving a Corolla to a BMW,’ while we are still trying to get the bicycle,” said Majola, in an interview in London. “They’re talking about different technologies, we’re talking about access.” Her comments reflect a 30-year debate between rich and emerging economies that is set to continue at COP24, the international climate conference in Katowice, Poland, in December. That meeting is meant to finalise the rules of the 2015 Paris climate deal while President Donald Trump is seeking to pull the US out of it. Meanwhile, economic costs and deaths from storms, floods, landslides and forest fires mount around the world. “Globally, there’s a commitment because the reality is that it’s out there,” Majola said. “I actually believe it’s not an optional thing...
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