If the sun sets on coal mines and oil rigs, a new horizon emerges: the dawn of a renewable energy revolution. But what happens to the workers whose livelihoods are tied to the old way of doing things? (Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
Eskom’s employees at Mpumalanga power stations have called on the government, Eskom and unions to provide alternatives to their jobs because they fear job losses with the introduction of renewable energy projects.
These concerns come despite assurances by Eskom and President Cyril Ramaphosa that the plan for a just transition to clean energy will not result in job losses.
The $10.7 billion loan agreements with France and Germany, following this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt, to assist Eskom to move away from its reliance on coal, have also not alleviated fears.
In November last year, at COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, the Just Energy Transition Partnership partners — France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union — pledged $8.5-billion to South Africa.
Irvin Jim, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) secretary general, has called on the government to clarify how the transition will affect employees.
Coal workers believe they will not be needed if renewable energy becomes prominent.
“The utility has not been truthful when it promised that we will not lose our jobs, think of me as an ordinary coal worker, what use will I be when the so-called renewables take place?” asked Karabo Mothekga, who works at Kendal power station.
Another employee, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “We have not been addressed by [Eskom’s] management about what will happen to our jobs when renewables come online and the West expects us to be fully off coal.
“How are they going to skill someone like me whose life revolves around coal and the surroundings of Mpumalanga?”
The employee added that Eskom had not trained employees to ensure they would have jobs in a clean energy future.
“We are not being reskilled, the technicians also are not getting sufficient skills to survive, what is clear here is that the utility will get rid of the dead weight, which is us, and hire new people to please the West at our expense.”
When presenting the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan at a media briefing, Ramaphosa said the move from fossil fuels to greener and cleaner energy sources cannot take place at the expense of economic growth and job creation.
In October, the 1 000 megawatt Komati power station in Mpumalanga became the first to be shut down. It will be repurposed for renewable energy generation using solar and wind power, and funding of about $500 million from the World Bank has been secured to finance the project.
Lungani Thobane, who worked at the Komati power station, said that since the closure, he has been moved from one station to another without “any hope to be placed.”
Overall, Eskom plans to decommission half of its 45 000MW capacity by 2035. More funding will be needed when more coal-fired power stations are shut down over the coming years.
Sonia Phalatse, a researcher at the Institute for Economic Justice, said in a recent article that climate change will worsen the state’s capacity to address the economic crisis.
“The climate crisis and economic crisis are intricately intertwined and can be addressed by policymakers by implementing a truly just transition towards a green sustainable economy that protects workers and creates decent jobs,” she wrote.
Numsa’s Jim said in a statement that coal power stations are labour intensive but renewable energy plants are not.
“What this means is that it is unlikely that hundreds of thousands of people will be absorbed by renewable energy companies in Mpumalanga.
“This province will be hardest hit because 12 out of 15 Eskom coal-fired power stations are located there,” Jim said.
A report by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research predicted that at least 100 000 jobs would be lost along the value chain as a result of the shift to renewable energy.
But Eskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha said in a statement that no employees will lose their jobs as a result of the transition.
On Wednesday, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe, responding to questions in parliament, said if Eskom were to bow to pressure to do “what is appearing nice”, to a swift move away from coal, “then we are going to be in darkness”.
“Germany is dismantling a wind farm to expand operations of a coal mine, as we sit here today. I can tell you that coal miners in the US are putting pressure on President [Joe] Biden to invest more in coal production. Here we say we must leave coal,” Mantashe said.
“I am one of the people who say we can have a transition but that coal is not just about numbers, it is about human beings.”
He added that a “reckless insistence on rapidly abandoning coal” as a form of electricity generation would spell unemployment for many.
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