A fresh logical discussion about Eskom

[itareanlnotani]

An excellent series of articles here - https://www.newframe.com/part-1-the-slow-violence-of-sas-nuclear-waste/ (4 parts) about how Eskom and NNR aren't doing much about spent fuel at Koeberg. Bare minimum...


If you think we need more Nuclear - think again.

 

[Supervan II]

Relying solely on Eskom is not the answer, as we all are painfully aware.

Perhaps devolution is the answer, where every municipality sources its own power source(s).

And strong action is needed against anyone who steals electricity - illegal connections are contributing to Eskom's woes.

 

[wingnut771]

Relying solely on Eskom is not the answer, as we all are painfully aware.

Perhaps devolution is the answer, where every municipality sources its own power source(s).

And strong action is needed against anyone who steals electricity - illegal connections are contributing to Eskom's woes.

Municipalities can't even clean the **** out the water.

 

[Priapus]

I need to remind myself to read this thread. Looks interesting

 

[itareanlnotani]

I need to remind myself to read this thread. Looks interesting

Trust me, its going to devolve into the usual rehashed **** after a while, then we'll get our pet ANC apologist and his counterpart taking over and ruining it for anyone interested in a conversation.

 

[Supervan II]

Municipalities can't even clean the **** out the water.

Not with the current setup, no. We need to revert to ratepayers only that can vote to replace the current f-ups.

Clearly the status quo is a farce, and a ****-show to boot.

 

[Oldfut]

Relying solely on Eskom is not the answer, as we all are painfully aware.

Perhaps devolution is the answer, where every municipality sources its own power source(s).

And strong action is needed against anyone who steals electricity - illegal connections are contributing to Eskom's woes.

Not enough; my Greek chorus is to privatise, free, fair, no monopolies, no AA, BEE, cronies, just compliance with "sensible" grid and environmental requirements, not ANC (etc) tea time rules. Sell existing generation, same rules. Suppliers can tender to users, same rules. I know, I know, twil never happen while the ANC elites etc are raping the SA citizen.

 

[Nerfherder]

Honestly, the DA isn't much better. They will also use Eskom as a cash cow. Just remember that the DA support the same employment model the ANC does. They say equal this and equal that, but to win over the majority vote they did stipulate that the amended labour laws are here to stay.

Politics are filled with special people that want to be wealthy famous and not work for a living. Their goal is empty promises.

Let us focus on Eskom, it will take 3 years per boiler to rebuild it. That is 3 years per unit for every unit. Consider the state of disrepair and the availability of parts. You are looking at a 3 to 5-year outage per unit. Most power stations had little or no repair work. So changes that entire power stations will be off for a minimum of 5 years is very possible. How many power stations can we be without?

Also, consider that we are currently generating 22 GWh to 23 GWh with level 4 to 6 load shedding. Not to mention the safety margin.

In short, we have no solution, unless Russia or America are willing to build power stations on our behalf. But not even they will be able to keep corruption out as they will be forced to make use of local skills. That is a big problem.

An example is Elon Musk with Starlink. They want half of Starlink! I mean WTF.

No, DA is infinitely better but the ANC is not a good measure of anything good or stable.
They do have their own problems and have different issues, they are not immune to in-fighting and corruption either.

The DA have already proven they can run a province better, even if they are just providing some competition they are showing it can be better.

 

[10:10]

Unless the DA can pull a brand-new power plant from its behind, we will have permanent rotational power regardless of renewable energy. Take all the batteries in South Africa then try to drive a single induction furnace at a steel, iron, gold or platinum plant and see how long those batteries last.

Some plants consume 500MWh PER ONE HOUR. How are renewables going to sustain that? The truth is we need nuclear power and we need it fast. Or you can try and build your economy on Greenpeace. Ask Germany or America how that is working for them.

A government can facilitate Eskom's repair and reinstatement to a point. But at the end of the day, you need hands that know what they are doing. Those hands are between 70 and 80 years old now. The people that were supposed to train under them never took their job seriously. Now they need 10 engineers to figure out why rocks can't burn as well as coal. 10 more engineers can't figure out half of the processes that are needed just to keep the ash from building up. That is not even the biggest problem.

DA or ANC or whoever is reading this. You NEED those old hands and you NEED to get them back so that they can train your people before it is too late. Because it is already too late. You want Eskom to function. Bring back the graybeards. They are the only people that can.

 

[wingnut771]

Unless the DA can pull a brand-new power plant from its behind, we will have permanent rotational power regardless of renewable energy. Take all the batteries in South Africa then try to drive a single induction furnace at a steel, iron, gold or platinum plant and see how long those batteries last.

Some plants consume 500MWh PER ONE HOUR. How are renewables going to sustain that? The truth is we need nuclear power and we need it fast. Or you can try and build your economy on Greenpeace. Ask Germany or America how that is working for them.

A government can facilitate Eskom's repair and reinstatement to a point. But at the end of the day, you need hands that know what they are doing. Those hands are between 70 and 80 years old now. The people that were supposed to train under them never took their job seriously. Now they need 10 engineers to figure out why rocks can't burn as well as coal. 10 more engineers can't figure out half of the processes that are needed just to keep the ash from building up. That is not even the biggest problem.

DA or ANC or whoever is reading this. You NEED those old hands and you NEED to get them back so that they can train your people before it is too late. Because it is already too late. You want Eskom to function. Bring back the graybeards. They are the only people that can.

Part one | The slow violence of SA’s nuclear waste

Part one of this four-part story considers the imminent danger involved in storing used radioactive materials, a dilemma growing at a rate of more than 32 tonnes a year.

www.newframe.com

 

[10:10]

Part one | The slow violence of SA’s nuclear waste

Part one of this four-part story considers the imminent danger involved in storing used radioactive materials, a dilemma growing at a rate of more than 32 tonnes a year.

www.newframe.com

Have a look at what solar waste is doing, neodymium mining, Lithium mining, refining and the aftermath.

Then look at the dark truth about oil.

I am not saying Nuclear is the best answer but it is not the worst.

 

[wingnut771]

Have a look at what solar waste is doing, neodymium mining, Lithium mining, refining and the aftermath.

Then look at the dark truth about oil.

I am not saying Nuclear is the best answer but it is not the worst.

I would say its the worst as you have to manage the waste for thousands of years, well if you read that link, Eskom don't even have a plan for the high level waste, it's just been sitting at Koeberg all this time.

 

[10:10]

I would say its the worst as you have to manage the waste for thousands of years, well if you read that link, Eskom don't even have a plan for the high level waste, it's just been sitting at Koeberg all this time.

When it comes to energy, there is no easy way out. Nuclear waste is a big problem. I will never say you are wrong about this. The fact is I stand with you on this matter. But perhaps it is time to figure out a way to get rid of it. Maybe put it in space? Maybe send it to the sun? I don't know what the answer is. But renewable energy can't produce what we need and without an economy, it doesn't matter what provides power. We will not be able to afford it.

Just remember on the 1st of July our power is going to cost 18% more. I assure you I am not making more money, so where will that come from?

 

[LCBXX]

Why do people keep trying to discuss Eskom separately from the ANC?

The ANC is the Government. The Government owns the SOE, Eskom.

 

[10:10]

Why do people keep trying to discuss Eskom separately from the ANC?

The ANC is the Government. The Government owns the SOE, Eskom.

Because the government can/might possibly change. Eskom is here to stay... Privatized or vilified it is here to stay.

 

[wingnut771]

When it comes to energy, there is no easy way out. Nuclear waste is a big problem. I will never say you are wrong about this. The fact is I stand with you on this matter. But perhaps it is time to figure out a way to get rid of it. Maybe put it in space? Maybe send it to the sun? I don't know what the answer is. But renewable energy can't produce what we need and without an economy, it doesn't matter what provides power. We will not be able to afford it.

Just remember on the 1st of July our power is going to cost 18% more. I assure you I am not making more money, so where will that come from?

All mining has environmental issues, so I'll take that over nuclear waste any day. We are only scratching the surface at the moment with grid energy storage (liquid metal batteries). Once that is mainstream, solar make sense, wind can **** off. Until then, we have to keep burning fossil fuels.

Regarding sending waste to the sun, Koeberg produces 32 tonnes per year. Also, the risk is too high of the rocket exploding raining high level nuclear waste over everyone. We also don't have any rockets and I doubt other countries would want the responsibility.

Also, nuclear won't bring the cost down, the cheapest coal in the world will and voting out the ANC.

 

[LCBXX]

Because the government can/might possibly change. Eskom is here to stay... Privatized or vilified it is here to stay.

Electricity supply is nationalised, under the direct control of the ANC Government.

Eskom did not come into the derelict state it is by itself. It was steered here by the ANC.

Address the ANC, directly.

 

[zll]

High speed turbomachinery operates efficiently from 30% to 100% power or 1.2MW electric, enabling resilient microgrids

As said on the video we will see this tech running in 2026 but the point is, it is on its way

A microgrid means the ANC has less direct control of things. They like the big grid because it's centralised around the ANC and it's government. Smaller systems are harder to infect with corruption than bigger ones.

 

[zll]

Just remember that the DA support the same employment model the ANC does.

Source please?

Some plants consume 500MWh PER ONE HOUR. How are renewables going to sustain that?

With this:

1. Bhadla Solar Park, India
Location: Rajasthan, India
Installed Capacity: 2245 MW

Bhadla Solar Park is the largest solar farm in the world. The facility, spanning over an area of 14000 acres, is located in the Jodhpur district of Rajasthan.

The solar farm has a capacity of 2.25 GW and required an estimated investment of over 1.3 billion dollars.

Commissioned in 2017, the massive solar project contains over 10 million solar panels. It was developed in four phases under the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) scheme, in line with the Rajasthan Solar Energy Policy, 2011.

The plant harnesses the dry heat of India’s desert state of Rajasthan to produce clean renewable energy.

Top 5 World’s Largest Solar Power Plants (2025)

Discover the 5 biggest solar power plants in the world (2025). Learn their capacity, country, and role in shaping global renewable energy.

ornatesolar.com

You NEED those old hands and you NEED to get them back so that they can train your people before it is too late. Because it is already too late. You want Eskom to function. Bring back the graybeards. They are the only people that can.

This will never happen at the scale it needs to. Even now there's pushback after Gordhan said they will bring the old guard in.

Eskom is here to stay... Privatized or vilified it is here to stay.

Not as we currently know it. It's going to be an abomination or a shadow of its former self.

 

[Pak Fa Fui]

All mining has environmental issues, so I'll take that over nuclear waste any day. We are only scratching the surface at the moment with grid energy storage (liquid metal batteries). Once that is mainstream, solar make sense, wind can **** off. Until then, we have to keep burning fossil fuels.

Regarding sending waste to the sun, Koeberg produces 32 tonnes per year. Also, the risk is too high of the rocket exploding raining high level nuclear waste over everyone. We also don't have any rockets and I doubt other countries would want the responsibility.

Also, nuclear won't bring the cost down, the cheapest coal in the world will and voting out the ANC.

Citation please