TechCentralTechCentral
    Facebook Twitter YouTube LinkedIn
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    NEWSLETTER
    • News

      Google’s giant Equiano Internet cable has landed in South Africa

      8 August 2022

      The African tech start-ups eyeing global markets

      8 August 2022

      Karpowership loses bid to overturn environmental ruling

      8 August 2022

      New app launched to tackle potholes in South Africa

      8 August 2022

      Rogue database felled Capitec in its worst-ever IT outage

      7 August 2022
    • World

      Nvidia issues profit warning on slump in demand for graphics cards

      8 August 2022

      Buterin: Mining on Ethereum Classic won’t affect Merge

      8 August 2022

      Musk challenges Twitter CEO to a public debate

      7 August 2022

      Amazon splashes $1.7-billion on Roomba maker iRobot

      5 August 2022

      Nigeria asks Google to block banned groups from YouTube

      5 August 2022
    • In-depth

      The length of Earth’s days has been increasing – and no one knows why

      7 August 2022

      As Facebook fades, the Mad Men of advertising stage a comeback

      2 August 2022

      Crypto breaks the rules. That’s the point

      27 July 2022

      E-mail scams are getting chillingly personal

      17 July 2022

      Webb telescope’s stunning images of the cosmos

      12 July 2022
    • Podcasts

      How South Africa can woo more women into tech

      4 August 2022

      Book and check-in via WhatsApp? FlySafair is on it

      28 July 2022

      Interview: Why Dell’s next-gen PowerEdge servers change the game

      28 July 2022

      Demystifying the complexity of AI – fact vs fiction

      6 July 2022

      How your organisation can triage its information security risk

      22 June 2022
    • Opinion

      SIU seeks to set aside R215-million IT tender

      19 July 2022

      No reason South Africa should have a shortage of electricity: Ramaphosa

      11 July 2022

      Ntshavheni’s bias against the private sector

      8 July 2022

      South Africa can no longer rely on Eskom alone

      4 July 2022

      Has South Africa’s advertising industry lost its way?

      21 June 2022
    • Company Hubs
      • 1-grid
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Amplitude
      • Atvance Intellect
      • Axiz
      • BOATech
      • CallMiner
      • Digital Generation
      • E4
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • IBM
      • Kyocera Document Solutions
      • Microsoft
      • Nutanix
      • One Trust
      • Pinnacle
      • Skybox Security
      • SkyWire
      • Tarsus on Demand
      • Videri Digital
      • Zendesk
    • Sections
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud computing
      • Consumer electronics
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Energy
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Motoring and transport
      • Public sector
      • Science
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home»News»Renewable energy deals in jeopardy as union objects

    Renewable energy deals in jeopardy as union objects

    News By Antoinette Slabbert13 March 2018
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email

    Government’s long-awaited signing of agreements with 27 renewable energy independent power producer projects (IPPs) on Tuesday was blocked by an interdict that the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) and Transform RSA obtained in the high court in Pretoria on Monday night.

    After a delay of about two years, newly appointed energy minister Jeff Radebe last week announced that government and Eskom will sign 27 of the agreements pertaining to bid rounds 3.5 and 4 of the department of energy’s acclaimed Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme on Tuesday morning.

    Eskom caused the delay by resisting the signing, but confirmed that it was now prepared to sign the power purchase agreements that would bind it to buy renewable energy from the independent producers for 20 years.

    The IPP roll-out will raise the cost of electricity dramatically, because IPP’s cost much more than coal-fired electricity

    Eskom argued previously that renewable energy is more expensive than the energy it generates from its own coal-fired power stations and tried to impose a cap on the tariffs previously negotiated between the department of energy and the independents.

    The Ramaphosa government however announced that it will proceed with the signing as well as the other renewable projects and the Eskom cap would not apply.

    In an early morning press release, Numsa said it obtained an urgent court interdict at the high court to prevent Eskom from concluding the outstanding renewable energy projects, including the power purchase agreements.

    In terms of the interdict, Radebe gave an undertaking that he would not sign the independent producers agreements, including the power purchase agreements, until the hearing on 27 March.

    Numsa said the signing of these contracts “would be detrimental for the working class of Mpumalanga and the country as a whole.

    Coal-fired plants

    “The signing of the IPP means that Eskom will require less coal-fired electricity. This is likely to lead to the closure of the coal-fired power plants and the impact will be that at least 30 000 working class families will suffer because of job losses.

    “The IPP roll-out will raise the cost of electricity dramatically, because IPP’s cost much more than coal-fired electricity,” Numsa said.

    “Electricity prices will skyrocket because of the IPP roll-out; while at the same time that VAT and the fuel price are going up, workers are being paid slave wages of R20/hour and less. The combination of all these factors will have dire consequences for the working class and the poor.

    “Numsa is a recognised trade union at Eskom, and we demand the opportunity to make submissions to Nersa (the energy regulator), Eskom and the energy minister on the IPP contracts and the implications for our members and their families. Eskom was planning to sign these agreements despite the fact that a previous application, by the Coal Transporters Forum to interdict them from signing, is still pending at the north Gauteng high court.”

    • This article was originally published on Moneyweb and is used here with permission
    Eskom Jeff Radebe Numsa
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    Previous ArticleApple buys the Netflix of magazines
    Next Article Spotify in South Africa: listen to the press conference

    Related Posts

    Google’s giant Equiano Internet cable has landed in South Africa

    8 August 2022

    The African tech start-ups eyeing global markets

    8 August 2022

    Karpowership loses bid to overturn environmental ruling

    8 August 2022
    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Promoted

    You don’t need a call centre to take advantage of call centre technology

    5 August 2022

    Black man, you are still on your own

    5 August 2022

    UC&C interoperability offers businesses operational cost relief in tough times

    4 August 2022
    Opinion

    SIU seeks to set aside R215-million IT tender

    19 July 2022

    No reason South Africa should have a shortage of electricity: Ramaphosa

    11 July 2022

    Ntshavheni’s bias against the private sector

    8 July 2022

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2022 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.