Our energy future

Overhaul of Eskom board to have no executive spill over - Engineering News

International summit urges stronger nuclear agencies and safety cooperation - Engineering News

Necsa to decide on new isotope reactor next year - Engineering News

SA plans to start nuclear procurement process next year - "South Africa plans to start the procurement process for its nuclear build programme next year, with the first new reactor expected to come on line by 2023, Energy Minister Dipuo Peters said on Thursday.

The country plans to add 9 600 MW of new nuclear power to its power-generation mix over the next two decades." More here, on Engineering News

Eskom launches ‘open innovation’ pilot to tackle key problems - Engineering News

Nersa delays Refit announcement to mid-June - "The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) would announce a decision on the review of the renewable energy feed-in tariffs (Refit) in mid-June 2011, it said on Tuesday."..."Nersa, which initially expected to complete the Refit review on May 26, said it delayed an announcement owing to the significant amount of feedback received after a public hearings process into the tariff review held on May 5 and May 6."..."Nersa said that 200 written comments were submitted and over 40 presentations were given during the process."..."The regulator released the revised tariff proposal in March, to the surprise of industry players. Most companies with renewable energy interests were not in favour of the revised tariffs as they were, in some cases, particularly solar power, significantly lower than the original tariffs. Many projects in advanced stages were relying on the original tariffs for financial closure, and said that the revised tariffs would render their projects unbankable." Extracted from this Engineering News article

SA should expect more distribution-linked blackouts as R27bn backlog grows - Engineering News

Greenpeace pushes for nuclear-free power mix, big renewable scale-up - "Although the DoE has released the policy-adjusted Integrated Resource Plan 2010 (IRP2010),Greenpeace was lobbying for new decisions, and adjustments to be made to the plan."..."The major push was for the government to more than double its target of 23% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030, to 49%, which Greenpeace believes is achievable."..."At present, about 1% of South Africa’s energy generation mix is derived from renewable energy."..."Compared with the IRP2010, Greenpeace’s energy [r]evolution scenario to 2050 would be significantly more expensive. If the reference scenario required about $181-billion investment, the energy [r]evolution scenario would require some $404-billion."..."However, Teske notes that the future cumulated savings on fuel costs would be significant and go some way to balance out these costs. He also noted that more jobs would be created through greater renewable energy input."..."Where the IRP2010 envisaged 133 000 jobs created in the energy industry, Greenpeace expected that through its energy [r]evolution scenario, some 140 000 jobs could be created."..."Greenpeace was also asking that the government completely remove nuclear power from the future energy plans, and in the interim conduct an independent safety review of the technology, particularly after Japan’s Fukushima nuclear incident."..."It was also stated that Kusile power station was not needed and construction of coal-fired power stations should stop after the construction of the Medupi power station."...Greenpeace also strongly advocated greater energy efficiency through stricter standards and targets." Extracted from this Engineering News article [our highlighting].

China interested in building nuclear plant in East Africa - "China wants to help build nuclear power generation in East Africa, uranium mining and investment company IBI Corp said in a statement after meeting Chinese officials in Beijing, revealing China's undimmed appetite for overseas nuclear expansion despite the Japanese nuclear crisis this year."..."IBI, which has uranium-prospective land in Uganda, said its director, AJ Coffman, held an "encouraging meeting... with the relatively new umbrella organisation overseeing China's research and development of Generation 3 and Generation 4 nuclear power plant designs."...""At the meeting, this entity expressed an interest in pursuing nuclear power plant construction in East Africa."..."China is in the early stages of a massive nuclear power expansion to help meet the demands of its power-guzzling economy and to weaken the grip of coal as the dominant source of fuel." Extracted from this Engineering News article[our highlighting].

SA hopes big LPG upscaling will help delay need for new power plants - "The department intends to address the cost of switching to gas appliances by implementing incentives,though they do believe market forces will also encourage consumers to switch to LPG even in the absence of incentives."..."Bulk distribution will be addressed by importing more LPG through the Richards Bay and Saldahna Bay terminals. The National Energy Regulator of South Africa had already granted one license for the importation of LPG through Saldanha Bay." Extracted from this Engineering News article

SA still going nuclear, but moving with renewed caution - "South Africa is still committed to integrating nuclear power into its electricity generation portfolio, Energy Minister Dipuo Peters made clear during her Budget vote speech in Parliament on Thursday. However she also *stressed that the Department of Energy’s approach remains a "cautious" one, even more so following the nuclear crisis in Japan as a result of the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami."..."
The department's director-general Nelisiwe Magubane added that, following the Fukushima incident, the Koeberg nuclear power station was also undergoing stress testing. The cooling mechanism of the plant was under particular scrutiny, as this was an area of failure at the Japanese plant."..."*Peters also said that the “nuclear transaction” needed to be commenced “well in time so that we can commission the power by 2023”." Extracted from this Engineering News article [*our highlighting]

Nuclear energy not a quick fix – Peters - ""Considering long term commitment to nuclear, countries interested in embarking on this programme will require at least 100 years to maintain sustainable and safety operation of the nuclear power, decommissioning and waste disposal," she said."...."Nuclear energy forms part of the integrated resources plan (IRP) which sets out the country's energy mix up to 2030. Nuclear would contribute 23% of the energy supply."..."Peters said South Africa should work with its regional neighbours on projects to secure energy supply."..."Peters said African countries such as South Africa, Namibia, Niger and Gabon were rich in uranium needed to produce nuclear energy."...""This gives the African states the confidence that they can rely on Africa for their uranium supplies," she said."...""This mineral must also benefit Africans through job creation. Partnership with all stakeholders in this value chain, including trade unions involved in mining of energy minerals is essential.""..."The minister said the public's confidence in nuclear power had been shaken by the tragedy in Japan where a magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami in March crippled the Fukushima nuclear plant, causing releases of radioactivity."...""All of us working in the nuclear field have an enormous task ahead of us to assure the public that nuclear power plants can be operated safely and to earn their trust," she said."...""It is our duty to work hard and communicate transparently about the risk of radiation and address the concerns raised by the Fukushima accident.""..."She warned, however, that this communication should not be "alarmist"." Extracted from this Engineering News article [our highlighting]

US bank grants R5,7bn loan for Kusile power station - Engineering News

China's ICBC to lend Zambia $285m for power line - Engineering News

Nuclear could ease energy shortage, create jobs – Adam - "Nuclear Industry Association of South Africa (Niasa) president Dr Rob Adam said on Wednesday that investment in nuclear power would not only ease South Africa’s energy shortage, but would also allow for significant job creation. Adam, who is also Necsa [South African Nuclear Energy Corporation] CEO, delivered a keynote speech on behalf of Energy Minister Dipuo Peters at the Nuclear Industry Localisation Conference (NILC) in Cape Town. He said that nuclear would remain a large part of the Integrated Resources Plan (IRP), which sets out South Africa’s energy mix over 20 years."..."The country’s intention to invest in nuclear power is “extremely positive” for the nuclear industry, said World Nuclear Association director of trade and transport Serge Gorlin."..."Germany is currently the only country to have taken the drastic step of completely closing its nuclear programme, with decommissioning of all its nuclear plants to be completed by 2022. Switzerland, while not closing its nuclear energy programme, has also been cautious and will not be replacing three units that have come to the end of their life cycle, Gorlin said. He added that other countries with established nuclear programmes, such as the UK and the US, were reviewing their existing nuclear plans, but have not fundamentally altered their stance towards nuclear energy generation. Developing countries, such as India and South Korea, were still pursuing growing nuclear energy programmes."" [*our highlighting] Extracted from this Engineering News article.[our highlighting]

Niger says nuclear plans to involve African peers - "Niger's plans to produce its own nuclear power will be developed in partnership with other African
nations, not alone, due to the country's low energy needs, the government said. Niger, *one of the world's poorest countries, is a major exporter of uranium and has oil reserves but currently imports some 70 percent of its energy from neighbouring Nigeria. *"If there is something that we have to do, it is to have our own civilian nuclear reactor," government spokesman Marou Amadou said late on Tuesday. "The one thing to highlight here is that our energy needs are low so we will only (have a reactor) in the context of a consortium of African states," Amadou said, without giving any details of which other countries might be involved."..."Niger's annual electricity consumption in 2007 was just under 590 million kilowatt-hours, according to the latest figures available on the CIA World Factbook."..."The West African nation's *key partner is French nuclear giant Areva, whose Imouraren mine should turn Niger into the world's No. 2 producer/exporter of uranmium."..."The mine will produce 5,000 tonnes of uranium a year from about 2013 or 2014, according to Areva."..."However, the country's north, *where the uramium deposits mostly are, is plagued with insecurity due to banditry, local rebellions and *armed groups linked to al Qaeda."..."Niger announced its nuclear plans last year but there are no target dates for the programme to get up and running." Extracted from this Engineering News article [our highlighting]