Day: April 24, 2023

In his weekly newsletter, President Cyril Ramaphosa says government is determined to tackle both the energy crisis and climate change together.

“The country is faced with both an electricity crisis and a climate crisis, which we must tackle together. Our position is clear and principled: it is possible for us to prioritise our immediate energy needs without jeopardising our climate commitments, and we are determined to do so.

“In fact, we must accelerate the pace of investment in new renewable electricity generation as an important part of the plan to overcome load shedding,” the President said on Monday.

While the country is faced with both an electricity and climate crisis, President Ramaphosa said government is intensifying efforts to address the electricity shortfall and it remains committed to reduce carbon emissions through a just transition.

The President says that how the country responds to the energy crisis will determine the future and the growth of the economy.

In addition to ending load shedding, the Energy Action Plan will act as a springboard to a just energy transition, boosting the rollout of renewable energy sources, mobilising hundreds of billions of Rand in investment and creating new jobs in sectors from electric vehicles to solar installation.

“We must be able to look back on this crisis as a crucial turning point for South Africa – as a moment where we not only worked together to overcome a national challenge, but laid the foundation for a better future,” he said.

The President highlighted that intensive work is underway to reduce load shedding by improving the performance of Eskom’s power stations.

This includes returning units at the Kusile and Medupi power stations to service on schedule, which will together add over 3,500 MW back to the grid.

It also includes improving the quality of coal supplied to power stations and ensuring that appropriate skills, adequate funding and effective planning are put in place for maintenance.

“We are making real progress in adding new generation capacity to the grid, buying power from neighbouring countries, fast-tracking new wind, solar, battery storage and gas projects. We have previously said that we have a deficit of some 6,000 MW, which we are working to close through all these efforts.

“We are seeing a massive surge of private investment in electricity generation as a result of reforms we have embarked upon. These reforms mean that private companies can invest in generation projects of any size and feed their power into the grid,” the President said.

He acknowledged that while these initiatives give the country confidence that it will end load shedding, they will take time to show results.

He said that Eskom is undertaking necessary maintenance now to ensure that planned outages can be limited during winter, when demand is expected to increase.

“As we enter the winter months, when our consumption of electricity rises, we will need to manage our use of electricity. One of the ways in which every South African can contribute to reduce load shedding is by switching off at peak times the home appliances that use a lot of electricity, such as geysers. There are simple energy saving solutions like geyser timers or geyser blankets that we can use,” the President said.

The President added that one of the issues widely discussed in light of the current electricity shortfall is the pace at which older coal-fired power stations that are coming to the end of their lives will be decommissioned.

South Africa has committed to reduce its carbon emissions by 2030 to within a target range which, at its upper level, is compatible with limiting global temperature increase to 1.5ºC.

“We remain committed to achieving this target. We need to do this to prevent the worst effects of climate change, including droughts, floods and other disasters. We also need to protect jobs in sectors of our economy that have to decarbonise to remain globally competitive. However, the manner in which these commitments are achieved must not compromise energy security or the immediate priority of reducing load shedding,” the President said.

In some cases, the President said, it may be necessary to re-examine the timeframe and the process of decommissioning or mothballing of coal-fired power stations temporarily to address the electricity supply shortfall.

“Few would argue that we should close down power stations even as we experience load shedding. A number of countries in Europe that had decommissioned or mothballed their fossil fuelled power stations are recommissioning them to address the current energy shortage as a result of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

“The process of re-examining our timeframes is not a reversal of our position on the just energy transition. Other countries have had to do the same in recent years without deviating from their long-term shift to renewable energy sources,” he said.

The President emphasised that any decision on decommissioning will be informed by a detailed technical assessment of the feasibility of continuing to operate older plants.

He added that it will also be informed by the timeframe in which we can expect new capacity from other energy sources and the impact on our decarbonisation trajectory.

“The health and environmental impact of emissions from coal-fired power stations also needs to be considered. In a meeting last week of the Presidential Climate Commission, it was pointed out that the transition to clean energy sources will prevent more than 400,000 avoidable deaths attributable to air pollution by 2050,” the President said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

To highlight the Department of Tourism’s Green Tourism Incentive Programme (GTIP), Minister de Lille will tomorrow visit the Houw Hoek hotel in Grabouw, Western Cape where a solar photovoltaic (PV) system have been installed with the Department’s assistance to protect the tourist business from the impact of the electricity crisis.

The development of GTIP was informed by escalating electricity prices, the intensifying pressure on the national energy grid and associated load-shedding conditions, as well as water scarcity and drought conditions which negatively impact the tourism sector.

The programme aims to encourage private sector tourism enterprises to move towards the installation of solutions for the sustainable management and usage of electricity and water resources. The GTIP not only helps to reduce pressure on the national electricity grid and water resources of the country, but also ensure an uninterrupted visitor experience for tourists, reduce operational input cost and facilitate increased competitiveness and operational sustainability in the tourism sector.

The GTIP programme has been running for the past few years and so far, 130 applications for GTIP funding were approved at a total grant value of R76.1million. By December 2022, 41 out of the 130 approvals had either commenced or completed installation while the remaining approved applicants are at various stages of finalising contracts.

The solutions installed or being installed at the 41 approved GTIP applicants is projected to substantially reduce energy consumption and result in electricity cost savings of between 65% and 80% on the electricity bills of these enterprises. Those installing water efficiency systems will typically see a reduction of between 30% and 50% in their water consumption.

The Houw Hoek hotel is one of beneficiaries of the GTIP and Minister de Lille will be visiting the site to inspect the solar PV installation and engage the owners on the success and benefits they have seen as a tourist site since the energy efficiency measures were installed.

The hotel applied for support under GTIP during the 2nd application window. The final approved solution included 464 roof-mounted solar PV modules, inverters and switches at a total project cost of just over R2.2 million. The installed system has an estimated cost saving of R382 289 (53%) on the hotel’s annual electricity bill and will off-set approximately 126 855 ton in CO2 emissions per year.

Details of Minister de Lille’s visit are as follows:

Date: Tuesday 25 April 2023

Time: 10h00 – 11h30

Location: Houw Hotel Hotel, Grabouw, Western Cape

All media are welcome to attend, Transport will be made available for members of the media, departing from Parliament at 8h15am on Tuesday 25 April.

To secure a place in the transport, kindly contact:

Natasha Rockman

Cell: 076 429 2262.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Mr Henry Andoh, Board Chairman of Weinglo Family International (WFL), has called on Ghanaians to support the government to equip schools with counseling services to prevent suicide. He said suicide prevention was a shared responsibility and everyone needed to play a role by being one another’s keeper, creating more awareness, investing in suicide prevention, and supporting people suffering from conditions that made them vulnerable. He made the call at a press conference as part of Weinglo Family International’s fifth anniversary held in Accra on Sunday on the theme: ‘5 years of suicide prevention activism, the achievements, challenges and the future.’ Mr Andoh noted that most schools did not have counselling programmes for students who are stressed and depressed due to their bad grades and family circumstances and urged school heads to make it a priority to ensure students reach out for guidance. He said most schools who have counsellors did not have access to provisions such us structures and paintings to aid in effective counseling. ‘You can have a school population of 500,000 students with only one counselor; how many students will he be able to attend to within 24 hours?.’ ‘We must build structures and employ counselors to make counseling therapy more efficient for the youth,’ he said. He said WFL conducted a survey in some selected schools in the Greater Accra Region and it was found out that, people as young as thirteen years had considered the thought of committing suicide. ‘This is very alarming for us all; it could be any of your friends or family involved in such thoughts.’ Suicidal thought does not happen just immediately; it makes the mind look for solutions and if it doesn’t find one then the thought sets in,’ he said. He said some girls lacked the means to afford menstrual pads during their menstrual periods, which caused suicidal ideation. Mr Andoh urged all teachers and heads of schools to avoid bullying in schools by adopting measures such as rules and regulations to ensure discipline and accountability in schools. Mrs Gloria Boatemaa Andoh, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for Weinglo Family International, in her remarks, said the main solution for suicide was love and care. As humans have become more emotionally driven in this century, it is a matter of love, care and acceptance that would solve suicidal tendencies, she said. She said with regard to students, it was mostly exam failures and relationship issues that led to the cause of suicide. ‘Therefore, I encourage all students to be steadfast and focus on their academic achievements to be the ideal person they want.’ ‘Suicide prevention can be curtailed if we talk people out when they share their problems,’ adding that WFL would continue to dedicate and support prevent suicide.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Michael Okyere Baafi, has reiterated government’s readiness to support businesses in Ghana’s construction industry to thrive in the wake of the global economic crisis. He said that government was keen on partnering with various technical institutions and private sector players by introducing policies that would enhance the sector amid the country’s competitive built environment. The Deputy Minister was speaking during a construction technologies workshop held at the Regional Water and Environmental Sanitation Centre (RWESCK) at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), in Kumasi. ‘The government of Ghana, through the Ministry of Trade and Industry, stands ready to assist businesses and local manufacturers in the construction industry, by creating a conducive environment and developing testing facilities to help enhance their production and stay profitable,’ he stated. He noted that government recognised the role of institutional partnerships in coming up with policies and directives that would improve the building and construction industry, and was, therefore seeking more collaborations with industry players to enhance the sector. ‘The Ghana Building Code, developed by the Ghana Standards Authority, in collaboration with other agencies and institutions, is an example of the government’s commitment to partnering with technical institutions to ensure that buildings, roads and other infrastructure, are constructed according to the highest standards,’ Hon. Baafi noted. He further encouraged stakeholders to involve themselves in policy-making processes so as to contribute to the development of the sector. Prof. Alex Dodoo, Director-General of the GSA, stated that the new GSA law mandated it to collaborate with academia and industry to design standards that would help improve the construction industry, hence, the workshop. ‘Our new law is clear that we have to undertake and encourage academic work in connection with standardisation. We are undertaking and encouraging educational work in connection with standardisation, establishing laboratories and other facilities to promote research and provide for examination, testing and certification of goods, services, processes and systems,’ he said. Prof. Dodoo further encouraged stakeholders in the sector to approach the GSA and make use of the Ghana Building Code in order to help mitigate the effects of earthquakes and other natural disasters, should they occur. ‘In the wake of earthquakes and earth tremors being experienced in parts of the world, it is important we come together and ensure that standards in the construction industry are strictly adhered to. ‘The GSA, with support from the government and the engineering community, has come up with a comprehensive building code which contains all the tools and directions on how buildings, roads and other infrastructure should be constructed. The construction sector is ready to take off in Ghana and the Ghana Building Code creates opportunities for industry to collaborate and build the country we want,’ he added. Dr. Wolfram Schmidt, a Senior Researcher at the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing – Germany (BAM), in a presentation, highlighted the future developments in cement and concrete technologies. He noted that his outfit was ready to collaborate with Ghana’s construction industry to find sustainable, effective and alternative materials for construction. The workshop, held on the theme: ‘Facilitating the Implementation of Science-Based Sustainable Construction Technologies’, was organised as part of an ongoing Institutional Partnership Agreement between the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MoTI), and the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA), with the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) and the Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) of the Federal Republic of Germany. The workshop provided an overview of the academic, government, and business strategies for developing novel construction materials, construction chemicals, and sustainable binders for a sustainable built environment in Africa, specifically Ghana. Stakeholders that attended the programme included representatives from Ghana Cement Limited (GHACEM); KNUST’s Engineering School; Engineering Council; Building Research Institute (BRI); MoTI; GSA, among others.

Source: Ghana News Agency