Global corporate renewable energy initiative RE100 and South African sustainable growth and development coalition the National Business Initiative (NBI) on July 8 launched their joint 'South African Policy Recommendations for Renewable Energy' document, which proposes five key recommendations.  

These are to accelerate electricity market reform to enable competitive renewables procurement; strengthen integrated planning and renewable energy-based electricity targets to guide investment; enable and scale direct corporate procurement through wheeling and standardised power purchase agreements (PPAs); fast-track the rollout of transmission infrastructure and grid connections and streamline project approvals; and expand voluntary green power options.

Speaking to Engineering News following the launch of the document, NBI environment head Alex McNamara explained that recommendations were co-created with business and key stakeholders, following comprehensive consultation with RE100 and NBI member businesses, energy technical experts, industry bodies, cities, provinces and key national policymakers.

He highlighted that the recommendations were localised to ensure they were applicable to the country, and also considered the current state of the energy market.

McNamara explained that considerable gains had been made in the country’s energy sector in recent years, such as the Energy Action Plan, the Electricity Regulation Amendment Act and the South African Renewable Energy Masterplan, and that this progress was pivotal for an economy facing pressure to decarbonise.

He added that businesses were largely cognisant of the economic and sustainability imperatives of transitioning away from fossil fuels, and prioritising investment in renewables.

RE100 and NBI have emphasised the rapid ramp-up of renewable energy as crucial for energy security, economic growth and competitiveness and achieving South Africa’s climate goals.

They have called on the South African government to expedite electricity market reforms, set clear renewable energy goals, enable and scale direct corporate procurement through wheeling, improve the grid and approval processes and offer more green energy options for businesses of all sizes.

These measures are posited as pivotal to increasing corporate investment in the country and driving the energy transition.

McNamara pointed out that large multinational and domestic companies were poised to invest in the country’s energy transition.

He emphasised that renewable energy must be advanced at scale to ensure energy security in the short, medium and long term, achieve national and company climate goals, encourage investment and grow local renewable energy assembly and manufacturing, and drive e-mobility and improve the country’s balance of payments.

McNamara underlined the importance of executing these recommendations, calling for policy implementation rather than reform.

The recommendations have underscored the importance of urgent policy implementation to unlock the country’s renewables potential, meet corporate renewables demand and capitalise on corporate renewables investment.

UNPACKING THE RECOMMENDATIONS
The first recommendation, to accelerate electricity market reform to enable competitive renewables procurement, entails fast-tracking structural reforms to create a competitive electricity market and enable transparent, least-cost procurement of renewable electricity by business.

This would be enabled through supporting the operationalisation of the National Transmission Company South Africa; implementing a competitive wholesale market by 2026 and supporting the full execution within the five year timeline; and improving market transparency.

The second recommendation, to strengthen integrated planning and renewable-energy-based electricity targets to guide investment, entails establishing clear, ambitious and regularly updated renewable-energy-based electricity targets backed by credible, coordinated energy system planning.

This would be facilitated by fast-tracking the implementation of the Transmission Development Plan, updating and improving the Integrated Resource Plan, ensuring energy policy alignment, and creating a clear trajectory for the transition to renewables within the energy mix.

The third recommendation, to enable and scale direct corporate procurement through wheeling and standardised PPAs, entails facilitating direct procurement of renewable electricity by corporates through standardised PPAs and harmonised wheeling frameworks.

This would be engendered by implementing the standardised national wheeling framework and ensuring alignment with State-owned utility Eskom and municipal revenue models, developing standard PPA templates, and supporting smaller buyer participation through aggregation.

The fourth recommendation, to fast-track the rollout of transmission infrastructure and grid connections, entails prioritising the expansion of transmission infrastructure and accelerating renewable-energy deployment by streamlining permitting processes and ensuring fair, timely grid connections for new projects.

This would be done by accelerating grid expansion in high-resource zones; standardising permitting timelines and facilitating timely grid connection approvals; and operationalising the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition’s Energy One Stop Shop.

The last recommendation, to expand voluntary green power options, entails enabling businesses of all sizes to procure verified renewable electricity through green tariffs, self-generation and internationally recognised certification systems.

This would be enabled by scaling up voluntary green tariff offerings; aligning with international standards; and encouraging investment in on-site renewable-energy solutions.