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The Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan welcomed the President of the World Bank, David Malpass, on behalf of the South African Government on Sunday (6 November) to the recently decommissioned Komati Power Station – the site of the country’s flagship Just Energy Transition (JET) project.
Malpass stopped in South Africa while on his way to the COP 27 Summit taking place in Egypt.
Minister Gordhan and Malpass were welcomed in the Mpumalanga Province by Premier Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane and received at the Komati power station by the Eskom Board chair, Mpho Makwana, and Group CEO, André de Ruyter.
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Komati is set to become the first major coal power station in South Africa to be converted into a site for renewable energy generation, as the country gradually transitions from fossil fuels to clean energy resources.
It seeks to make a major contribution to mitigate climate change and ensuring energy security while supporting a range of economic initiatives for local communities in the Komati area.
The World Bank last week, at the request of South Africa, announced that it will provide a R9 billion concessionary loan (a loan granted to or received by an entity on terms that are not market related. Concessionary loans are granted by public sector entities to achieve particular policy objectives. The loan component of concessionary loans issued by an entity is accounted for as a financial asset.) towards South Africa’s just energy transition, of which the Komati project will be the first step.
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“Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a difficult challenge worldwide, and particularly in South Africa given the high carbon intensity of the energy sector.
“Decommissioning the Komati plant this week is a good first step toward low carbon development.
“We are cognisant of the social challenges of the transition, and we are partnering with the government, civil society, and unions to create economic opportunities for affected workers and communities,” said Malpass.
The Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, who met with Malpass on Saturday evening, said the financing Eskom is receiving will go a long way in assisting to meet the ambitious targets relating to decarbonisation and a Just Energy Transition.
“The repurposing of Komati is a critical first step in a long journey, one that we cannot walk alone if we are to strike the urgent balance between our environmental, economic and energy imperatives.
“We will continue to mobilise capital, internationally and domestically, to finance the transition in the interest of the lives and livelihoods of our people,” said Godongwana.
“This project will greatly assist Eskom, South Africa and the international community to develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of how the processes of decommissioning and repurposing of coal-powered stations can be done,” Gordhan added.
“It needs to happen in a manner which mitigates the socio-economic impacts for workers and communities; before we scale up the move of the power sector into a low-carbon path.
Crucially, it will provide training in new skills and for new jobs,” Gordhan explained.
The last unit of the Komati Power station was decommissioned and switched off on 31 October 2022, signalling the end of its operating life as a coal-fired power station.
The Komati plant will be converted into a renewable generation site powered with 150MW of solar, 70MW of wind and 150MW of storage batteries, adding generation capacity to the grid, thereby continuing to put the site and its associated transmission infrastructure to good use.
A containerised micro-grid assembly factory has already been established on site. This will help prolong the usefulness of the infrastructure and provide economic opportunities to the community.
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Eskom has developed a comprehensive Just Energy Transition (JET) Strategy, which places equal importance on the ‘transition to lower carbon technologies,’ and the ability to do so in a manner that is ‘just’ and sustainable.
The employees remaining in Komati at the time of the decommissioning will become part of the Repowering and Repurposing project.
The Komati Training Facility is already under development. It will facilitate the reskilling, retraining, and upskilling of Eskom employees and members of the community, as appropriate.
Eskom has signed a partnership agreement with the South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre (SARETEC) of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) to develop the training facility.