South Africa’s Minister of Electricity Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has assured Namibia that the security of supply of energy from South Africa will not be affected by the country’s ongoing load-shedding.
Ramakgopa made the remarks following closed-door meetings held with Namibia’s Minister of Mines and Energy Tom Alweendo on Friday in Windhoek. The two ministers were discussing ways to collaborate on developing green hydrogen industries in the region.
“You have 100 megawatts confirmed and we will continue to do that, and I don’t think that is at risk,” Ramakgopa said.
He said that South Africa is making continued improvements to its power generation capacity, and that more electricity is expected to be brought into transmission by December.
“We are continuing to improve the efficiency and reliability of the units, we have moved from a historic low of 48% to about 60% and we continue to improve,” Ramakgopa said.
He also said the intensity of load-shedding is starting to lessen as a result of these improvements.
“We are making significant strides, the intensity of load shedding which is really a technical instrument that we deploy when demand far exceeds generation, and we use that to make sure that we are able to protect the grid. That intensity will lessen as a result of the improvements we are making,” he said.
Alweendo echoed Ramakgopa’s sentiments, saying there is a need for collaboration between the two countries to address the energy deficit in the Southern African Power Pool.
“The visit was really to think about how we develop in terms of closing that power deficit,” Alweendo said.
Namibia imports a total of 460 megawatts (MW) from regional power utilities to meet its daily energy demands. Of this, 200MW comes from Eskom, in a deal that was recently renegotiated and extended for another three years. The remaining 80MW comes from the Zimbabwe Power Company.
The two ministers also discussed the potential for developing green hydrogen industries in the region. Green hydrogen is produced using renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power. It is a clean and emissions-free fuel that could be used to power vehicles, homes, and businesses.
“We are excited about the potential for green hydrogen in the region,” Ramakgopa said. “It is a clean and sustainable source of energy that could help us to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels.”
Alweendo agreed, saying that green hydrogen is “an important part of the future of energy in the region.”
The two ministers agreed to continue discussions on ways to collaborate on developing green hydrogen industries in the region.
