/ 12 August 2023

Rushing decarbonisation is not the answer, says Energy Council’s MacKay

Sa's Renewable Energy Sector A Beacon In Africa

Energy Council chief executive James Mackay has warned against pressure to accelerate decarbonisation in South Africa. 

In an interview with the Mail & Guardian, Mackay said that there is a plan to lower emissions in the country but it should not be rushed as it may negatively affect the economy.

“If we had to try and force the system to transition quickly, we would probably break things and end up in a deeper crisis because the system cannot handle it. So there is a lot of resistance, although the ambition to decarbonise as quickly as possible is very correct, it needs to be at a pace that supports South Africa,” he said.

The pressure to decommission the country’s coal fleet comes after countries across the globe signed an agreement to reduce their carbon footprint. South Africa committed to decommission its coal-fleet as a response to reducing its carbon footprint and replacing it with renewable energy.

According to environment minister Barbara Creecy’s 8th National Greenhouse Gas Inventory report, the country has been ranked as the largest emitter in Africa and ranks 14th in the world.

Despite the country’s ambitions to decommission, calls to delay the timeline have been made by government ministers in light of the energy crisis.

According to Eskom, 80% of the country’s power is still produced from coal. 

Mackay said the country’s energy plan was bold but South Africa did not have the capability and capacity to handle a rapid transition.

“There is a very high technology ambition put forward by the Presidential Climate Commission, which is very rapid, so it will shut roughly a third of our coal fleet by 2030 and build close to 60 000 megawatts of wind and solar, which will become the new clean, innovative technologies. But we don’t have the capability and capacity to implement at that speed,” he said.

He said the council seeks to assist the country’s transition safely by offering practical ways to move away from coal without putting pressure on the system.

Mackay echoed electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa and energy minister Gwede Mantashe’s statements that it would not be wise to decommission the coal fleet because of the energy crisis impacting the country.

He added that the country should follow the steps of developed nations in strengthening its energy sector whose foundation was on fossil fuels.

“The energy crisis is not unique to South Africa. It would be wise for us to learn from the many countries that have been faced with this crisis before us, and lean on the plans of the National Energy Crisis Committee (Necom) and the presidential committee to get out of the crisis.”

The main challenge for Ramokgopa and Mantashe is that renewable energy does not have a baseload (the minimum energy needed in 24 hours), and therefore it is not reliable when there is no sun or sufficient wind to power the country.

The ministers have often argued that coal serves as a stable baseload for when the solar and wind are not providing enough power.

Eskom’s low energy availability at power stations has affected its ability to generate enough capacity to provide for usage during peak hours in the country, and improving the energy availability is one of the key pillars of the just energy plan.

Mackay said the country could look at options like gas-to-power as an alternative to coal like the UK is doing.

He added that although gas-to-power was a fossil fuel, it provided baseload for backup.

“The UK is doing that because they need that baseload sort of quality energy insurance in the system.” 

Mackay said the country should take advantage of all the technologies available to strengthen the grid and to move away from the crisis. These include all types — coal, wind, hydrogen, solar, natural gas, nuclear — until the crisis has been averted. He added that he supports the decision to extend the life expectancy of power plants for the sake of the crisis.

“The solution is in the middle ground. We need Eskom. We need coal and we need all technologies. We need a lot of wind and solar as well, we need batteries, we need gas to power. And really, this is what’s coming through Necom with the reform.”

He cautioned against the slow energy policy reform which delayed the move to innovative renewable energy solutions, saying lack of reform in energy policies placed the country at a risky position of being left behind.

South Africa could also face penalties in carbon taxes which would further impede the country’s financial position. He added that the electricity crisis is an opportunity for policy reform, for agile working and for mobilising capacity to tackle the huge challenge that faced the country.

MacKay urged the Necom team to think about energy security more broadly than just an electricity problem, saying energy security would be a challenge for years.

He called on businesses to play a role in helping the government navigate the crisis, “because it will be very expensive to transition”.

Mandisa Nyathi is a climate reporting fellow, funded by the Open Society Foundation for South Africa