The question of whether natural gas can help in the transition to a low-carbon future – and whether Africa should exploit its prodigious reserves – is sparking a fierce debate.
Karpowership is fuming. And not because it is burning gas. When South Africa’s Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy announced in early June that power purchase agreements had been signed for only three of 11 planned emergency power projects—intended to rapidly fill the country’s energy gap—the Turkish energy firm Karpowership was quick to point fingers for their failure to be on the list.
If we want a power system dominated by clean, renewable energy, we need lots of natural gas - or so we are told. This drumbeat, which has set up gas as a "critical transition fuel", has been meted out by government ministers, the oil and gas lobby, some serious researchers and everyone of varying degrees of cynicism in between.
While the ANC's policy conference in late June this year is officially about the battle of policy ideas, there are strong indications already that the power contest(s) will overshadow debates around ideology and delivery. And yet, the policy documents published by the party ahead of its conference are important, as they give an indication of what officially the future direction of the party could be.
An integrated assessment of infrastructure solutions for reducing nutrient-related pressures in the Hartenbos estuary
This report presents the results of a Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) assessment for wastewater treatment infrastructure in South Africa. Specifically, the study analyzes different wastewater treatment options for improving water quality in the Hartenbos estuary. It also explores opportunities for reusing water for irrigation and related impacts on nutrient loads to the estuary.
Recycling treated wastewater for irrigation offers considerable benefits for climate adaptation and the agriculture sector. Reusing 50% of the water by 2060 would cover the water demand of 330 additional hectares of agricultural land, resulting in higher water security, agricultural productivity, and job creation.
The economic viability of the wetland option depends on whether its implementation increases habitat quality and biodiversity, which in turn attracts additional tourists relative to the baseline. Practically, when ecological and tourism benefits are considered, the wetland is the most economical option; when these are excluded, it is the least economical option.
The results of the analysis illustrate that planners and policy-makers need to carefully consider the benefits and trade-offs of different infrastructure options for wastewater treatment. While the hybrid solution performs best for reducing nutrient pollution, the potential to create additional revenues from tourism through the implementation of the artificial wetland would result in even higher net benefits relative to the hybrid option.
The results of this assessment provide an overview of the societal costs and benefits of different water treatment options, considering outcomes for citizens, businesses, Mossel Bay Municipality, and the Western Cape Government. The comparative valuation provides several insights. Examples of research questions include: how efficient are the different technologies for treating the wastewater, and what contribution would they provide to the water quality of the Hartenbos estuary? Do the different options comply with national water quality standards? What would be the direct and indirect economic outcomes of improving water quality and recycling water? These questions (and more) are answered in this SAVi assessment.
The South African government’s plan to develop a gas-fired power industry brings both economic and climate change mitigation risks. Furthermore, investors in gas projects may need to absorb substantial economic losses, as the risk that fossil fuel assets will fail to make a return on investment is escalating rapidly.
South Africa is potentially on the verge of a gas investment flurry that could prove to be a "very expensive mistake" for its people, a recent report has found.
When the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) reports start talking about the increasing risk of "runaway climate change" if the global temperature passes 1.5°C above the pre-industrial norm, it feels like perhaps the minimum threshold of mitigation action the world should be considering has been raised significantly compared to a year ago.
Investment by the government and private sector in a gas-to-power industry could be a costly mistake that may delay the transition to renewable energy, the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) has warned.
The International Institute for Sustainable Development cautioned in a new research report that developing just 3,000MW of gas-to-power capacity in South Africa from scratch by 2030 would cost at least R47-billion – money that could ultimately be wasted, as gas is squeezed out of the global market by cheaper, low-carbon alternatives.