Renewable energy industry body the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) expects 2022 to be a year defined by the accelerated uptake of green power procurement.
The body also believes the year will be characterised by South Africa’s intensifying commitment to the climate agenda, alongside a number of other shifts in the energy space brought on by changes in technological deployment.
“We cannot separate wind power and the climate dialogue and view our sector as a key implementer for the country to decarbonise its power sector and increase its energy availability simultaneously,” says Mercia Grimbeek, chairperson of SAWEA.
This, as minerals and energy minister Gwede Mantashe says SA’s rich deposit of minerals required in the production of renewable energy sources is a big boon for the mining industry.
He was speaking yesterday at the North West Mining Investment Conference held in Rustenburg.
The North West province, in particular, is estimated to have at least half of the world’s platinum metal groups and rare earth minerals – also called minerals of the future – critical in the production of clean energy sources such as wind turbines, batteries, magnets, and even solar photovoltaic panels.
“Most of these [rare earth] minerals are going to be in high demand as we transition from high carbon to low carbon emissions [and] the minerals that we require to transition are in this [North West] province. These are the minerals that we call minerals of the future,” Mantashe said.
Much work to be done
The wind energy association says renewable energy production needs to be scaled up significantly to meet climate change objectives agreed to at the Paris Agreement by many countries, including SA.
At present, says SAWEA, emission trends are not on track to meet these goals. In SA, the organisation notes this will require a profound transformation of the energy generation system, as government plans still fall far short of emission reduction needs.
According to SAWEA, renewable energy and energy efficiency provide the optimal pathway to deliver the majority of the emission cuts needed at the necessary speed.
Together they can provide a significant percentage of the energy-related CO2 emission reductions that are required, using technologies that are safe, reliable, affordable and widely available, it adds.
Grimbeek envisions a decarbonised power sector, dominated by renewable sources, being at the core of the transition to a sustainable energy future.
Although the power sector has made significant progress in recent years, she points out the speed of progress must be accelerated. Industry, transport and the building sector, to name a few, will need to use more renewable energy, Grimbeek notes.
“There is a definite trend for the world to shift to cleaner sources of energy generation, and climate change is moving to the forefront of framing long-term business strategy and plans,” she says.
“The finance world is becoming increasingly unsupportive of funding new coal generation projects. Societal pressure is increasing toward more sustainable sources of energy generation in the face of the real effects of climate change.”
The association notes that industry and manufacturers are under increasing pressure to reduce their carbon emissions and carbon footprint.
It explains this necessitates governments and regulators to draft regulations to increase the deployment of renewable energy. This in itself is a hugely positive impetus for the South African market.
With the current status of the energy market in SA, these trends not only support the execution of the Integrated Resource Plan 2019 but definitely encourage a more considerable wind energy generation in excess of that, it adds.
SAWEA points out that SA can address fundamental challenges of energy access, energy security and climate change through the deployment of renewable energy.
“We can harness our abundant potential of increasingly cost-competitive renewable energy to service the growing demand for electricity and avoid a potential fossil-fuel lock-in,” says the organisation.
“Something else to look out for if we follow international trends, is an increase in the types of technologies being deployed to maximise the deployment of renewables. Renewable technologies also present ample potential for the creation of new industries, job creation and localisation across the value chain.”
Many green prospects
SAWEA believes this presents a unique opportunity for the South African industry to expand into new avenues of production driven by new technologies, such as storage, being introduced.
Furthermore, it adds, it provides opportunities to increase the local manufacturing of various components over time.
“With consistent procurement facilitated by supporting regulations, the opportunities to increase local manufacturing is hugely positive,” says the industry body.
The renewable energy sector uses various sources of data to support sector growth and in certain instances to address sector challenges, it notes.
“By way of example, the Renewable Energy Development Zones provide areas of expedited development with shorter timeframes and hence a faster roll out of renewables. Similarly, the sector monitors the data released by the system operator to ensure development is concentrated in areas where capacity is available.
“In addition, where data reveals grid constraints, it provides the opportunity for the sector to engage the system operator to find efficient solutions to transmission hurdles. Like any other business, the renewables sector is constantly assessing commercial data to ensure the cost competitiveness of the sector remains,” says the association.
“We are a country that has the chance to accelerate the deployment of renewable technology and become a world leader in clean energy production. So, I expect the sector will play a role in building institutional capacity to develop and implement national policies for increased access to electricity, whilst pursuing the low carbon development of the electricity sector,” Grimbeek concludes.
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