Ramaphosa to address the nation on energy crisis

TEXTILE GUY

TEXTILE GUY

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Just watched it now ....... A lot of it makes sense.
A lot of the root causes were missed IMHO.

None the less ................ lets see if what is said, bears fruit.

Looking back, we have similar discussions ..... this from 2015, sound awfully similar to what I have just heard.

1 – Eskom must do all the necessary maintenance​

At the moment Eskom has a policy of trying to ‘keep the lights on’, which means avoiding maintenance on the power stations.

It would be better if Eskom did the necessary maintenance, which would mean more blackouts, and scheduled the blackouts so that consumers could plan for them.

It might even make financial sense for Eskom not to run its gas turbines, and accept even more blackouts.

Key industrial customers, such as mines and smelters, should then be favoured over households and businesses that are better able to cope with blackouts.

2 – Enable private power suppliers​

All bureaucratic, regulatory, and political obstacles against private power suppliers selling electricity into the grid should be removed.

3 – Dividing South Africa into two time zones​

Since the time of peak demand in South Africa and elsewhere is at supper time, about 19h00, it has been suggested that the country should be divided into two time zones, an hour apart.

Supper time in the western half would be an hour after that in the eastern half, reducing the national peak demand. This should be investigated.

4 – Using power ships​

Some African countries, notably Ghana, get electricity from ‘power ships’, which are essentially floating power stations. This could be a possibility for Durban, East London, and other coastal cities.

However, such electricity would be powered by oil or gas, which would determine whether its price was economic for South Africa.

5 – Reduce electricity demand​

All measures to reduce electricity demand or shift from electricity to other sources of energy would help.

Householders using gas rather than electricity for cooking at breakfast and supper time would help greatly. The obstacle to this now is that gas is more expensive than electricity.

6 – Use ‘smart meters’ and charge by ‘time of use’​

The problem with household electricity pricing is that municipalities buy electricity from Eskom at ‘time of use’ (TOU) tariffs. At peak times they have to pay far more than at off-peak times.

However, they sell it to householders at flat tariffs. The municipalities make money by selling electricity off-peak and lose it by selling electricity on-peak.

The solution would be to have ‘smart meters’ in each household and to charge the householder by ‘time of use’.

Permanent solutions for Eskom​

The best way forward is to keep Eskom as a state-owned generator, while allowing any company to compete against it for the generation and sale of electricity – provided this competition is strictly on a commercial basis and is not skewed by subsidies.

1 – Eskom must be depoliticised​

Eskom must be depoliticised. It should resume its old function: to provide sufficient, reliable electricity and to cover its costs.

It should be forbidden from pursuing political, social, or racial ambitions. It must appoint its engineers and other technical staff entirely on merit.

Its financial managers must be forced to accept that Eskom’s purpose is to provide a service and not to make a profit. They must also accept that it is happy with a low rate of return (3% real or less) and a long payback time.

They must borrow to fund the new stations, with repayment scheduled to take place over a period of some 40 years, and they must manage the debt responsibly.

2 – Eskom’s transmission system must be taken from it​

Eskom’s transmission system must be taken from it and given to an independent operator. All large-scale generators must be entitled to use the transmission system in return for a reasonable fee, based solely on technical and commercial considerations.

3 – Allow people to sell electricity to the grid​

Households which generate small amounts of solar power should be allowed to sell their electricity to the national grid.

4 – Electricity distribution should be taken away from municipalities​

Electricity distribution should be taken away from municipalities and given to private electrical engineering companies. These will have to compete with one another in supplying final customers, which will help keep their prices down and their efficiency up.

5 – Select good energy sources for future electricity generation​

Click to expand...
 
am-user

am-user

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It’ll be unfair to exchange cheap midday solar power for expensive mid winter peak diesel/gas generated power.
 
Herr der Verboten

Herr der Verboten

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TelkomUseless

TelkomUseless

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TEXTILE GUY said:
Just watched it now ....... A lot of it makes sense.
A lot of the root causes were missed IMHO.

None the less ................ lets see if what is said, bears fruit.

Looking back, we have similar discussions ..... this from 2015, sound awfully similar to what I have just heard.
Click to expand...
Yea. All talky no action. On Par for government...
 
TEXTILE GUY

TEXTILE GUY

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Fulcrum29 said:
I do, because I have been tired and ill for more than 3 weeks already. The best I can do with my energy is riddle and moan.
Click to expand...
Hope you get better soon .....

Personally, I take my frustration out on the ANC ............. doesnt help anyone one iota ..... but makes me feel better.
 
R13...

R13...

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Does anyone know how much the buying of additional available power from IPPs will add? The plan is a bit lacking in timelines and expected MWs in that time.
 
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