South Africa delays nuclear power plant plan to consult more
Adds Ramaphosa signing into law power sector reforms in paragraphs 4-5
By Tannur Anders
JOHANNESBURG, Aug 16 (Reuters) -South Africa will delay starting the procurement process for a new nuclear power station to allow for more consultation, its energy minister said on Friday, following legal challenges.
The government said in December that it was preparing to request bids for an extra 2,500 megawatts (MW) of nuclear power, but the then-opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) party and two non-governmental organisations launched legal challenges to try to block the procurement.
The DA is now part of the coalition government formed after the African National Congress lost its parliamentary majority for the first time in three decades in an election in May.
Separately, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law legislation that lays the foundation for a competitive electricity market, his office said in a statement.
The long-planned reforms in the Electricity Regulation Amendment Act are part of efforts to make the power sector more efficient in Africa's most industrialised economy, which has been plagued by rolling blackouts for years although there have been no outages for more than four months.
Announcing the delay to the nuclear procurement on Friday, Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa conceded there should have been greater public participation so far.
He said he had decided to withdraw a document in the government gazette that would have allowed the procurement to proceed.
Officials will rework a report addressing conditions the energy regulator gave for its support for the procurement and consult the public again.
Ramokgopa made clear that the government still wanted to expand its nuclear capacity beyond the 1,900 MW Koeberg plant outside Cape Town at a pace and scale the country could afford.
"Nuclear is part of the future, but it's important that as we go out and procure, the procurement process must be able to stand the test of time," the minister said.
He estimated the procurement process could be delayed by three to six months.
Many South Africans are wary of the government's nuclear ambitions after a 9,600 MW deal with Russia initiated during Jacob Zuma's scandal-plagued presidency was thwarted in 2017 by a court challenge.
Koeberg is the only operational nuclear power plant on the African continent. It was granted a 20-year life extension last month.
Reporting by Tannur Anders;
Editing by Alexander Winning, Emelia Sithole-Matarise and Mark Potter
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
