Latest news with #SouthAfricanRenewableEnergyMasterplan
TimesLIVE
a day ago
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Fail to plan, plan to fail
It's no secret that South Africa has abundant potential to generate renewable energy. If you don't believe me, just go outside on one of these unseasonably warm late summer days we've been having and feel the breeze on your face. What we have lacked until recently, however, is a co-ordinated effort to exploit this potential – and to establish a sound position for South Africa in the renewables value chain. The Cabinet's recent approval of the South African Renewable Energy Masterplan thus represents an exciting step forward. Electricity and Energy Deputy Minister Samantha Graham-Maré says that, crucially, the plan is the result of collaboration between civil society, industry role players, labour, government, independent power producers and others, making it holistically aligned with the whole renewable energy ecosystem. One of the key things the plan addresses is developing the skills South Africa – and indeed most countries worldwide – need to drive our energy transition. From engineers and data scientists to environmental impact assessors and welders, there are thousands of jobs that can be created should the various stakeholders across that ecosystem work together. This is just one of the issues we address in this revamped, and thus inaugural, issue of Renewable Energy Solutions. We also check out the Global African Hydrogen Summit taking place in Windhoek later this year, the potential for biogas development in the country, how we can make those proliferating data centres of ours a bit more sustainable, what the evolution of the battery industry means for a country stocked with crucial minerals, how private trading is transforming the energy market, and just how we're going to fund the Just Energy Partnership with Donald Trump having withdrawn funding. If anything illustrates how you can't plan for everything, it's that last point. Nevertheless, it still helps to have a plan.
Zawya
09-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
South Africa Approves Renewable Energy Masterplan, Targeting Enhanced Energy Security
The South African Cabinet has approved the South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (SAREM) for implementation, targeting energy security and broader industrial growth. The plan seeks to address challenges associated with local capacity, infrastructure and investment by providing a roadmap for developing renewable energy and battery storage technologies. For investors, the plan identifies a clear pathway to advancing power projects as South African electricity demand is expected to rise two-fold by 2040. The upcoming African Energy Week (AEW): Invest in African Energies 2025 – taking place September 29 to October 3 – will examine the impact the SAREM will have on the country's energy mix. Uniting African government and policymakers with energy operators and investors, the event seeks to drive investment in African energy, in alignment with broader goals of making energy poverty history. AEW: Invest in African Energies is the platform of choice for project operators, financiers, technology providers and government, and has emerged as the official place to sign deals in African energy. Visit for more information about this exciting event. South Africa targets ambitious growth across its renewable energy market, striving to strengthen grid resilience through large-scale investments in generation and transmission infrastructure. Led by policies such as the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) – revised in 2023 – the country envisages 29.5 GW of new capacity by 2030. Of this, 14.4 GW will be derived from wind while 6 GW comes from solar. The latest procurement round of the IRP targets 6.8 GW of renewable energy, 3 GW of natural gas and 1.5 GW of coal. To realize these goals, the SAREM aims to leverage rising demand for renewable energy and storage technologies, with a focus on solar, wind, lithium-ion battery and vanadium-based battery technologies to drive industrial development in South Africa. The masterplan is anchored on four primary areas: supporting local demand for renewable energy and storage by unlocking system readiness; driving industrial development by building renewable energy and battery storage value chains; fostering inclusive development by driving transformation of the industry; and building local capabilities in terms of skills and technological innovation. The SAREM is expected to fuel the already-growing South African renewable energy market. According to the African Energy Chamber's State of African Energy 2025 Outlook , South Africa – alongside Egypt – is expected to continue leading Africa's power generation in 2025. The continent has over 500 GW of renewable energy capacity in concept phase, 80% of which are in the North African region and South Africa. South Africa is also one of several countries leading in nuclear-based power generation. The SAREM will support growth by facilitating partnerships across the value chain, implementing targeted training programs while addressing challenges associated with regulatory barriers. While the SAREM provides significant benefits to the renewable energy landscape, Cabinet has directed that additional work be done on the masterplan to incentivize investors to fund projects. This includes the development of green hydrogen to meet international obligations of 5% blended fuel in aviation and maritime sectors by 2030. During AEW: Invest in African Energies 2025, a multi-track program will explore how policies such as the SAREM will shape Africa's energy landscape. A dedicated Energy Transition stage will investigate Africa's strategic approach to driving a just transition, tackling key topics including Energy Security in Africa; Driving Local Value; Scaling-up Renewable Energy; and many more. A Powering Africa stage will address fundamental challenges and opportunities surrounding Africa's electricity market. For South Africa, panel discussions on Bridging the Electricity Gap; Energy Efficiency; Strengthening Public and Private Sector Collaboration; Energy Diversification, and more, will identify opportunities for investors and project developers. Meanwhile, an Invest in African Energies: Country Spotlight on South Africa will examine the country's energy landscape, including the advancement of oil and gas projects and the implementation of utility-scale renewable energy projects. From green hydrogen adoption to battery storage solutions to solar, wind and natural gas, the spotlight will explore the role an integrated energy mix will have on the country's energy future. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Energy Chamber.
