Botswana keen for corridor to link to South Africa’s coalfields

Botswana’s Minister of Transport and Communications, Dorcas Makgato, has revived the need for a new heavy haul railway linking Botswana’s Mmamabula area with South Africa’s Lephalale coalfields.... 

Exxaro upbeat about its coal operations

Empowered coal mining giant Exxaro Resources is confident about its prospects in the coal sector, despite tough conditions and rising cost pressures in South Africa. Exxaro executive head of coal... 

Invest in clean technology to counter the siege on the coal industry, Mantashe implores

The coal industry needs to counter the negative attitude towards the industry by investing in clean coal technology and funding research initiatives to find alternative markets for coal, says... 

Eskom laments poor quality of coal

Eskom COO Jan Oberholzer has called on coal mining companies to "play ball" and improve the quality of the coal they supply to the utility. He has also outlined the massive challenges facing the... 

Organisations criticise ‘untransparent’ and ‘inefficient’ Eskom

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has suggested that Eskom should be granted an electricity tariff increase of only 5% over the next three years and pushed for a radical overhaul of the... 

Salga warns of the dangers of raising electricity tariffs

The South African Local Government Association (Salga) has rejected Eskom’s appeal for a 15% tariff increase over the next three years, saying the utility is "out of touch with reality". “There is... 

Eskom warns of ‘debt trap’ as it pleads for 15% hike

Eskom CEO Phakamani Hadebe has apologised for the severe predicament Eskom is in, but has pleaded for an electricity tariff increase of 15% over the next three years.   Hadebe made the call at the... 

Electricity increases will badly hurt poor – community leaders, residents

Community and faith leaders, as well as pensioners and residents, have called on the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) to oppose Eskom’s request for a tariff hike, with a projected... 

Atlantis SEZ seeks to attract yet more green-technology investors

The Atlantis Special Economic Zone (SEZ), which has been launched by President Cyril Ramaphosa, has already attracted R680-million in investment and created 312 jobs.  A large slice of the... 

Ramaphosa launches new Western Cape special economic zone

President Cyril Ramaphosa has officially launched the Atlantis Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in the Western Cape, with the goal of making it "a launching pad for economic growth" in the region. “A... 

Organisations criticise ‘untransparent’ and ‘inefficient’ Eskom

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has suggested that Eskom should be granted an electricity tariff increase of only 5% over the next three years and pushed for a radical overhaul of the... 

Eskom warns of 'debt trap' as it pleads for 15% hike

Eskom CEO Phakamani Hadebe has apologised for the severe predicament Eskom is in, but has pleaded for an electricity tariff increase of 15% over the next three years.   Hadebe made the call at the... 

Council for Geoscience to finalise its data policy

The Council for Geoscience (CGS) says it is will be finalising its data policy early next year following a moratorium on its geophysical data. The council put a moratorium on geophysical data after... 

DMR hopeful about shale gas prospects

The Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) and the Council for Geoscience (CGS) are upbeat about the prospect of shale gas in the Karoo. “Gas formations are starting to show already,” Mineral... 

Mantashe wants separated oil and gas Bill fully prepared for sixth Parliament

Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe has announced he will amend the moratorium currently in place for the oil and gas sector, to allow for the processing of applications currently in the... 

Education, Health, Public Works finances in a bad state

Auditor-General Kimi Makwetu has warned that the financial health of the provincial departments of health, education and public works are in a bad way and need urgent intervention. “Urgent... 

Audit outcomes of State-owned entities regress

The audit outcomes of State-owned entities (SOEs) have regressed over the past financial year compared with both the previous year and 2014/15. The 2017/18 general report for the Auditor-General... 

Shocking decline in audit results of government departments

The Auditor-General has been given more powers to crack down on national and provincial government department and their entities. This follows another year of overall decline in their audit... 

Big plans afoot for training more young people in renewable energy

The South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre (Saretec), which provides training for wind turbine service technicians and which has recently expanded into training solar photovoltaic (PV)... 

SA is making strides in physics, but lags in gender equality

South Africa is making strides in the field of physics, as well as steady progress in developing and appointing black researchers in the field, but is lagging way behind in gender equality, a study... 

South Africa marks ten years of collaboration with CERN

South Africa this week celebrated its ten-year collaboration with CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, best known for major breakthroughs such as the discovery of the Higgs-Boson... 

DMR hopeful about shale gas prospects

The Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) and the Council for Geoscience (CGS) are upbeat about the prospect of shale gas in the Karoo. “Gas formations are starting to show already,” Mineral... 

Mantashe lifts moratorium on oil, gas applications to kickstart exploration

Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe has announced he will amend the moratorium currently in place for the oil and gas sector, to allow for the processing of applications currently in the... 

Wind energy industry commits to investing in South Africa

South Africa’s wind energy industry has adopted a charter, which commits to long-term investment in the development of the country. A commitment statement drafted by members of the industry was... 

Global body forecasts continued growth in wind energy generation capacity

China, the US, Germany, India and Spain are the top five markets for wind energy in the world, with 19.6 GW of installed capacity in 2017, according to the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). GWEC... 

Prices for renewable energy likely to drop further, suggests energy expert

Prices for renewable energy are likely to continue to drop, while the next utility-scale renewable energy procurements will probably come sooner rather than later, suggests energy expert, Professor... 

Radebe hints at possible Saudi investment to boost South Africa’s oil refining capacity

Energy Minister Jeff Radebe has called for a collaborative approach to attract investment in oil refining hubs throughout the continent and has hinted that Saudi Arabian investment in refining... 

Oil is here to stay, says the IEA

The world’s consumers are not yet ready to say goodbye to the era of oil, while the demand for gas is in the fast lane thanks to its flexibility, says the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA... 

Big plans afoot for training more young people in renewable energy

The South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre (Saretec), which provides training for wind turbine service technicians and which has recently expanded into training solar photovoltaic (PV)... 

Companies on a drive to become more efficient

Cape Town’s Groote Schuur hospital, a leading manufacturer of catalytic converters and a well-known car sales dealer have one essential thing in common. They have all managed to radically improve... 

Digitalisation set to shake up the energy sector

Energy experts believe there are great opportunities to save money and boost efficiency with a move towards more digitisation in the energy sector. They are preparing for a shake-up, spurred on by... 

Lessons on transforming manufacturing in India

Transformational changes in manufacturing in India have been unpacked at the Lean Summit Africa 2018, in Cape Town, holding important lessons for ramping up efficiency and boosting competitiveness... 

Calls to even out procurement for wind energy

The South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) has called for energy planners to even out the procurement of wind energy allocations between 2021 and 2030 to prevent a "stop-start" scenario.... 

Fossil Fuel Foundation sees ‘clean coal’ as part of solution for SA

The Fossil Fuel Foundation (FFF) has advocated strongly for coal to be retained as a sustainable part of South Africa's energy mix for the short to medium term. “Contrary to the popular belief that... 

Concerns raised over coal-sector job losses

The National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and the Black Business Council (BBC) have called for amendments to the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2018, telling Parliament's Portfolio Committee... 

Salga calls for revision to electricity demand forecasts

The South African Local Government Association (Salga) has called for a reduced demand forecast for electricity to be included in the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2018, in line with the slowdown... 

Concerned citizens have their say on IRP 2018

Concerned citizens and activists have come to Parliament to speak out about the draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), with fracking, high electricity tariffs and coal-fired power stations among... 

Cosatu calls for overhaul of draft electricity plan

The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has rejected the draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2018, calling for an overhaul. It also called for a firm commitment not to retrench workers... 

Don’t limit renewables in IRP, urges prominent activist

Prominent activist Liz McDaid has called on the government not to limit the construction of renewable energy capacity under the draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2018. “A look at the IRP says... 

Cut air pollution and improve health

Government has a golden opportunity to improve public health in South Africa and mitigate global climate change if it drops plans for the construction of more coal-fired power stations and focuses...