Mineral resources & energy minister Gwede Mantashe says he does not share Eskom’s enthusiasm for shutting down coal power plants and replacing them with renewable ones, because it is a strategy akin to economic suicide.
Eskom CEO André de Ruyter has set his sights on a "just transition" transaction for Eskom in which some of its coal-fired plants are retired earlier than the timetable contained in the Integrated Resource Plan, and replaced with 7,400MW of newly built renewable energy.
De Ruyter hopes to raise R180bn in concessional finance but will need the government to do so — in particular, support from the Treasury.
Replying to questions at a meeting of parliament’s portfolio committee on mineral resources & energy on Tuesday, Mantashe said SA would not close down coal power stations prematurely as that would not support the country’s developmental needs.
"We are a strange country that is so keen to commit economic suicide. I’ve never seen any other country do that. China is building 15 coal-fired power stations today, as we sit here. A few countries in Europe are resuscitating coal stations because that is what meets their needs. We are not talking about coal; we are allergic to coal and fossil fuels," he told MPs.
Countries across the globe are under pressure to reduce carbon emissions to keep global warming below 2°C, a goal set by the Paris Agreement in 2015.
SA is the world’s 12th-biggest greenhouse gas emitter, with Eskom responsible for 40% of emissions. The government is engaged in formulating a "just transition" to a lower-carbon economy, which will ensure that vulnerable communities and employees are not left stranded by the change.
"A transition is not an overnight change. How do we navigate through that? Eskom gets excited and says they are closing power stations and are going to open renewables, which obviously will take far fewer people to run than coal, so I ask what are they excited about? That they will have renewables destroying lives instead of coal? My own view is, let’s have a discussion about developmental needs and not reduce ourselves to killing coal and opening renewables," he said.
Mantashe is a strong advocate for building a gas-to-power sector in SA. State-owned company iGas recently increased its stake in the Republic of Mozambique Pipeline Investments Company gas pipeline to 40%, exercising its pre-emptive right to acquire a larger share, along with Mozambique’s Companhia Mocambicana de Gasoduto. The 865km pipeline runs from gas fields at Temane to Sasol in Mpumalanga. The two state-owned companies now own 40% each of the pipeline, with Sasol holding 20%.
"You can replace coal turbines with gas turbines, which is why we have a pipeline from Mozambique to SA. We can take that gas pipeline to the coalfields in Mpumalanga," said Mantashe.
Gas is also a fossil fuel, but is not yet regarded in the same light as coal, as it has fewer emissions. It is, however, firmly in the sights of activists who want an end to all fossil fuels.
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