South Africa has allowed eight coal-fired plants run by state-owned Eskom to breach emissions rules in an attempt to help the cash-strapped utility focus resources on providing a steady supply of electricity.
The Lethabo, Kendal, Tutuka, Majuba, Matimba and Medupi power stations have been given a five-year exemption, while Duvha and Matla were given extension until 2034, environment minister Dion George said at a briefing in Cape Town. Five other plants run by Eskom, South Africa’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, were granted exemption until 2030 in June.
South Africa relies on coal for more than 80% of electricity generation. The exemption will help Eskom spend on running its plants for longer in a country that’s suffered from rotational blackouts for decades. Eskom’s plan to stabilise supply relies on extending the decommissioning dates of some coal stations.
South Africa must roll out renewable energy plants “with urgency” along with other measures to accelerate transition, George said, adding that Eskom wanted longer extensions. “I did not give them what they wanted.”
Eskom’s plan to transition to cleaner sources of energy has hit multiple delays, from grid constraints to court battles that slowed a programme to build renewable plants.
Energy minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa this month warned that the system remained vulnerable because of delays in the procurement of more generation capacity. The country’s sole nuclear power station, once regarded as Eskom’s most reliable plant, has been among the units that have broken down.
Deaths
The health effects of running coal plants for longer could take a bigger toll than the economic constraints of load shedding.
TCS | Bruce Mellado on the tech-led fight against air pollution in South Africa
Delays to the planned closures of coal-fired power plants alone could result in thousands of deaths from air pollution and lead to billions of dollars of health-related costs, the Helsinki-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said in a report last year. — (c) 2025 Bloomberg LP
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