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Picture: 123RF/MADAMLEAD
Picture: 123RF/MADAMLEAD

The declaration of a national state of disaster to help address the energy crisis should not be construed as an end to the current energy crisis. Last week, we went back into stage 6 load-shedding, a reminder that there is still much work to be done to stabilise the grid.

The reality, if you consider the significant effect of load-shedding, is that there is no easy fix and a more all-inclusive approach from all sectors of society is needed.

By now we all have a good idea of the significant effect load-shedding is having on the country. At a cost of R10bn a year (Intellidex, 2022) and hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs lost as small businesses are forced to close their doors, it’s a dire situation. Businesses that have the available finances are burning through gallons of costly diesel each day to keep operations running.

This is all compounded by recent past events — supply chain constraints as a knock-on effect of the Covid-19 pandemic, the July 2021 civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, the April 2022 KwaZulu-Natal floods and, internationally, the ongoing situation in Eastern Europe.

What sets load-shedding apart is its contribution to underperformance across supply chains. In particular, the fact that power cuts are more frequent and take place at short notice means businesses are being left with less time to react and ensure it is economically productive and efficient in supplying customers with what they require.

For big businesses such as Tiger Brands, prolonged periods of load-shedding present a challenge to our cost base as the price of mitigating the regular occurrence of load-shedding with generators is significant at almost four times the Eskom tariff.

While we and others with similar available resources have geared our facilities to continue operations, hundreds of small to medium-sized businesses are not able to do the same. Their demise due to the energy crisis would come at a great cost to our economy and communities.

While the government puts in place plans to deal with the challenge, it is only sensible for us to do what we can and contribute to improving the situation. Big business in SA can play an important role in easing the burden on others by reviewing our dependence on the national grid and finding alternative means of sourcing energy. In doing this we help ensure there is more to go around for small businesses and consumers.

A business-led solution

A healthy business sector creates stable jobs and drives a healthy economy. We therefore need to use our means to offset the impact of the energy challenge for the benefit of all. The key lies in how business adapts, finding a way to generate energy that lessens its load on the national grid. Doing so will not only allow for business continuity but will also create extra capacity that can be sold back to the grid as well as free up capacity for other users who cannot afford alternative energy sources.

The next question is how. One solution already set to become a requirement in SA is green retrofitting. Green retrofitting involves any measures that help make a building more energy and water efficient. These steps can take many forms, with the ultimate goal being to reduce a building’s carbon footprint.

At Tiger Brands we have begun the rollout of solar power at our manufacturing plants, with the first four going online at the end of March. The intention is to introduce renewable energy solutions at all of our sites by 2030. Our goal is to source 65% of electricity requirements at a manufacturing plant level from a sustainable energy source, reducing our scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by up to 45%.

Our hope is that the number of large corporates investing in alternative and sustainable energy sources will continue growing. It is in everyone’s interest for business to play a part in lightening the load on the national grid. Not to mention the additional incentive proposed by Eskom to offer a “feed-in tariff” that will allow users to sell their surplus power back to the utility.

It seems only logical that more businesses must seize this opportunity by engaging with alternative energy sources and the alternative energy industry. This will accelerate the reduction in consumption, and by doing so SA’s business community can continue operating in a sustainable manner to the benefit of all.

• McKernan is chief manufacturing officer at Tiger Brands.

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