South Africa's Energy Regulator Stands Behind Revitalised Nuclear Power Plan

• Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe's 2020 plan to acquire 2 500MW of power from nuclear plants has reportedly been backed by Nersa
• The plan was approved by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa on Thursday, 26 August
• Head of Communications at Nersa, Charles Hlebela, confirmed that the decision was made on Thursday and that Nersa is coming to a complete decision with the Energy Department

A plan put forward by the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Gwede Mantashe has been given the go-ahead by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa. Mantashe put the plan forward in August 2020. The idea is to acquire 2 500MW of nuclear power from something called 'new generation capacity'.

The Nersa's Head of Communications Charles Hlebela confirmed that there was a decision made during a meeting held on Thursday, 26 August. Nersa, according to Hlebela, is in the process of coming to a decision with Mantashe's department.

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According to News24, this decision means that the nuclear procurement programme in South African can move forward. The prior plan put in place to acquire 9 600MW of nuclear power from a bunch of new plants was stopped by a 2017 court ruling.

Nasdaq reported that the idea for the 9 600MW expansion project was brought forward by former president Jacob Zuma but was reportedly polluted by allegations of corruption. The project was brought back a year later on a much smaller scale.

Senior Nersa official Nhlanhla Gumede told Reuters that electricity regulatory members considered a proposed nuclear acquirement plan in line with the Electricity Regulation Act.

Some of the conditions for agreement of the procurement include that procurement should be at a level that South Africa can afford and that the process for the tender should be open, transparent and competitive.

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The South African Government is planning to stop loadshedding and take Eskom back to the top

Previously, Briefly News reported that the Public Works and Infrastructure Department has reportedly published a plan involving the South African Government's important developments up until the year 2050. It is called the National Infrastructure Plan.

One of the main points of the plan is the country's energy supply. Government proposed a move from fossil fuels and therefore the ongoing loadshedding within 30 years. The DPWI stated that loadshedding has been caused by a number of factors.

A report by BusinessTech revealed that while the majority of the plan of action focuses on changes that will be put in place by 2050, there is a specific section that focuses on direct and immediate changes planned to be implemented within the next three years.

Source: Briefly News