H.E. Gwede Mantashe, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy
South Africa’s Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, H.E. Gwede Mantashe, has announced the finalization of a power purchase agreement (PPA) to meet South Africa’s 4,000 Megawatt power shortfall – which has led to load shedding, or rolling blackouts – to relieve stress from the national grid.
Minister Mantashe commented that the 2,000 MW PPA will conclude between March and April 2022 and will be undertaken via the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Program.
During a Post-State of the Nation Address (SONA) debate on February 15, 2022, Minister Mantashe stated that other PPAs, for an additional 2,600 MW, will also be finalized in the coming months through South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Progam’s bid window 5. Bid window 6 will follow in the coming months to allow proposals for a further power supply of 2600 MW with 513 MW, coming from battery storage. At six-month intervals thereafter, proposals for bid window 7 will follow.
The additional power purchase agreements are aimed at alleviating the ongoing power crisis and advancing the country’s efforts to invest in cleaner energy.
