Dear members,
Reflecting on last year, it is clear that 2022 was a year of contrasts, with both successes and lost opportunities. We celebrated a number of regulatory changes namely the ERA amendments and ERA schedule 2, which have impacted our sector significantly, opening up opportunities in the private off-taker market and accelerating the liberalisation of the broader energy landscape.READ MORE
Dear Members,
The severe strains on the electricity system continues to frustrate the South African public. Eskom’s recommendations in presenting the transmission development plan provides some light on the future mix required for an optimal operating system. As SAWEA, we have supported and continue to support the system operator in its aim to plan for an energy secure future. The 50GW of new generation capacity in the next 10 years is aligned with the renewable energy sectors’ vision. According to our mandate we continue to address blockages to wind power procurement and generation and are hence actively engaging on grid capacity challenges.READ MORE
Dear Members
We are just days away from Windaba 2022’s kick-off, which promises to be an outstanding conference, thanks to our members and broader industry’s continued support and involvement. At the same time the EnergyDrive’s Cape Route will be launched, once again made possible by the many wind farms across the three provinces, which are funding this much-loved edu-vehicle.READ MORE
Dear Members
As we mark another ‘Women’s Month’, I’m pleased to confirm our commitment to gender equality as demonstrated in the work that is being undertaken in the lead up The Wind and Solar Gender Diversity Study as example of the work being undertaken by our Association. This study, which was conceptualised by SAWEA, funded by GIZ and undertaken by Urban Earth, is currently underway, and I am pleased to report that the literature review is complete and are moving into data collection. Please look out for the survey on data that is required to inform this important study. In the next phase, we will be looking to conceptualise an industry led Gender Diversity Charter to direct the sectors commitment to diversity.READ MORE
Dear Members
It’s just days since our President addressed the on-going energy crisis, outlining the government’s plan. He was certainly candid in his approach, clearly stating the current challenges and laying out the numerous interventions, to tackle the energy crisis head on and further liberalise our energy system.READ MORE
Dear Members
As we continue our drive for increased wind power procurement support SA’s push of the Climate Agenda, the relevance and importance of educating school learners becomes increasingly relevant. With this in mind, we invite our members to once again support the EnergyDRIVE, which has already actively engaged with an estimated 4 000 learners over the last four years.READ MORE
Dear Members
As our country continues to bare under the weight of strangled energy availability, we now expect BW5 preferred bidders to reach financial close by the end of June, or late September 2022, pushed out from end-April, which was just six months after the bidders announcement, in October last year. The original timeframe was actually very tight considering the complexity of the market and scale of the procurement process.
This is something that our Policies & Markets WG is unpacking, namely the ideal timeframe for projects to reach financial close, which needs to be short enough so that pricing from suppliers and contractors can be as close as possible to the pricing that was bid on, and long enough so that all permits, consents, and the Eskom budget quote can be obtained as well as for all agreements to be negotiated and finalised.
Preparations for #WindAc Africa 2022 (11-13 October) are already underway, with our call for students to apply for sponsorship already live on the WindAc Africa website. The sponsorship covers the conference fee; travel and accommodation expenses; a student workshop; as well as the very popular networking event.
We bid farewell to Letlhogonolo Tsoai, Technical Programme Officer, who has been a valued member of our team over the last 2 years. We have commenced the recruitment process for a Senior Technical Advisor, which is a key role as this person will lead the management of all SAWEA working groups, manage research objectives amongst other key functions.
Kind regards,
Niveshen Govender
CEO, South African Wind Energy Association
Dear Members
April was a very busy and fruitful month, with the opening of BW6 undeniably being the highpoint, as it signposts a period of rolling wind power procurement. As we celebrate this REIPPPP bidding window, which will bring rise to the much-needed additional 1600MW of wind energy in SA, we simultaneously keep pushing to unblock the challenges around reaching Financial Closure of the RMIPPPP and BW5 projects, which continues to drag.
READ MORE
Dear Members
As we continue to observe global advancements in Wind Energy, we can clearly see that South Africa is no different, as evident in the Global Wind Energy Council’s ‘Capturing Green Recovery Opportunities from Wind Power in Developing Economies’ report. The research indicates that our sector has the potential to deliver R150-billion in gross value-add to the economy over 25 years, something that we are all working towards.READ MORE
Dear Members,
I would like to begin by thanking everyone who has welcomed me warmly. I have stepped into the role of SAWEA’s CEO, at a time that our industry is experiencing exponential growth, transformation and expectation to support the country’s economic recovery.READ MORE
