South Africa confirms US withdrawal of $1.5bn Just Energy Transition Partnership pledge

The Presidency has confirmed that it has been formally informed that the US has withdrawn from the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), to which it had initially pledged more than... 

Creecy turns to courts after audit confirms driving licence machine tender was irregular

The Department of Transport will lodge a High Court application for a declaratory order seeking guidance on how to proceed after a driving licence card machines tender was found to have been... 

Cape Town moves to open electricity grid to traders after pilot

After the conclusion of a year-long electricity ‘wheeling’ pilot project, the City of Cape Town is opening its electricity grid to private electricity sales and trading. During the pilot phase, 562... 

R40bn Eastern Cape green energy cluster expected to reach financial close in 2027

Emerging electricity retail brand Earth & Wire is aiming to achieve financial close on a R40-billion renewables and storage cluster in the Eastern Cape by the third quarter of 2027 and begin... 

Cabinet agrees on guidelines for reworked Budget ahead of March 12 tabling

At a special meeting held on March 3, Cabinet considered a variety of options to fund the 2025/26 Budget, the tabling of which was delayed for the first time ever following disagreements over a... 

Hill-Lewis wants Port of Cape Town included in private sector participation RFI

Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis has expressed his desire for the Port of Cape Town to be included in an upcoming national government initiative to test the appetite of private companies to... 

Ramaphosa to make address at Microsoft’s AI investment announcement

President Cyril Ramaphosa will deliver the keynote address at the Microsoft South Africa investment announcement in Johannesburg on March 6. The Presidency said the investment would enhance South... 

New World Bank report proposes four priorities for accelerating South Africa’s growth

A new World Bank report argues that South Africa can raise growth and employment by pursuing four priorities aimed primarily at stimulating market competition and bolstering the efficiency of... 

AMSA to proceed with closure of longs unit after talks with govt fail to yield solution

Steel group ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) has confirmed that it will proceed with the wind down of its longs business after talks with government failed to yield the “timely solutions required”... 

Soon-to-be-launched grid-funding instrument can be private participation template for all SoEs – Ramokgopa

Electricity and Energy Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says the private sector participation framework being developed for the transmission sector will be unveiled within five weeks, while... 

TNPA signs 25-year operator agreement for South Africa’s first LNG import terminal

South Africa’s State-owned Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) has signed a 25-year terminal operator agreement with Zululand Energy Terminals (ZET) for the development of the country's first... 

Has the inconceivable been made conceivable?

Absent that dreaded black sharpie, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana (consciously or unconsciously) engaged in a manoeuvre last week that bore more than a passing resemblance to the performative... 

KfW approves R2.8bn Just Energy Transition Partnership concessional loan for Cape Town

German development bank KfW has approved a R2.8-billion concessional loan for the City of Cape Town, which will use the funding to strengthen its electricity infrastructure and integrate... 

Frail cyclical metals and engineering trends may ‘turn structural’ unless domestic demand revives

The Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (Seifsa) is warning that absent a sustained recovery in domestic demand there is a risk that South Africa’s persistently weak... 

Investment value of private projects registered with Nersa climbs to above R200bn

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) reports that it registered a further 143 renewables generation facilities with a combined capacity of 1 107 MW and an investment value of more... 

G20 energy work group set to meet amid divergence over just energy transition

The G20 Energy Transition Work Group will have its inaugural meeting this week to discuss the energy priorities that South Africa is seeking to place on the international agenda during its G20... 

Sasol cuts emissions-reduction capex as it confirms rejigged plan

JSE-listed Sasol has confirmed significant changes to its emission reduction roadmap (ERR), while also announcing material reductions to its capital expenditure requirements for implementing the... 

Repurposed Twistdraai destoning plant key to Sasol’s plan for recovering Secunda’s output

Energy and chemicals group Sasol is repurposing its Twistdraai export coal plant as a destoning operation to improve the quality of coal being used in its Secunda gasifiers, in Mpumalanga, where it... 

Eskom reduces loadshedding to Stage 4, but questions linger over Stage 6 shock

Eskom reduced the intensity of loadshedding to Stage 4 in the early hours of Monday morning after having shocked the country by rapidly ramping up the intensity of its rotational cuts to Stage 6 in... 

Eskom says maintenance focus to shift to balance of plant, after failures lead to shock Stage 6 return

After taking the shock decision to ramp up loadshedding to Stage 6 in the early hours of Sunday February 23 - having declared Stage 3 on Saturday - Eskom is aiming to bring a halt to rotational... 

Ramokgopa hints that new IRP includes 10-year delay to coal shutdowns

Electricity and Energy Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has given the strongest indication yet that the next edition of the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) will include a 10-year delay to the... 

AMSA postpones longs wind-down by month amid intense rescue talks with government

Steel producer ArcelorMittal South Africa (AMSA) has postponed the wind down of its longs business by a month to allow talks with government on possible ways to prevent the closure to progress, as... 

Closing date for rail-slot bids extended to Feb 27

The Transnet Rail Infrastructure Manager (TRIM) has announced an extension, from February 7 to February 27, to the closing date for slot applications under the recently published Network Statement,... 

New Nordex head says South Africa remains key market, despite recent headwinds

Newly appointed Nordex Energy South Africa MD Robert Timmers says that South Africa is poised to be one of the multinational’s largest markets outside of North America and Europe in 2025. This,... 

What next?

Amid much hand wringing over President Donald Trump’s hostility towards South Africa, some clear-eyed analysis has emerged confirming that Trump’s enmity has not been triggered only by the new... 

RFP for multi-line transmission package to be released in Nov – Budget docs

Note: This article has been written partly using information from documents provided to the media during the 2025 Budget lock-up prior to the cancellation of the Budget Speech on February 19. The... 

The Budget trade-offs that will now come into focus ahead of March 12

Note: Some of the information in this article has been written on the basis of documents provided to the media during the 2025 Budget lock-up prior to the cancellation of the Budget Speech on... 

Carbon tax electricity price neutrality extended to end 2030

As anticipated, the 2025 Budget offered fresh guidance on South Africa’s approach to carbon taxes, including confirmation of government’s decision to extend the commitment to electricity price... 

Budget postponed to March 12 after GNU Cabinet fails to agree on two-percentage-point VAT hike

In an unprecedented development, the speaker of Parliament Thoko Didiza was forced to postpone the 2025 Budget address by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana on Wednesday. This, after Cabinet failed... 

South Africa again flags mega oil refinery plan and expresses desire for regional partnership

The South African government has reiterated its stance that South African needs a mega oil refinery despite “fundamental changes” under way globally, including the transition to electric mobility.... 

NOA Group gearing up to supply wheeled electricity after securing trading licence

The trading arm of private energy company NOA is gearing up to supply wheeled renewable electricity to multiple customers in South Africa following the National Energy Regulator of South Africa’s... 

JUWI building 340 MW of solar PV to supply SA corporates

Leading global builder and operator of renewable-energy projects JUWI Renewable Energies has announced that it is building three utility scale solar PV projects in South Africa with a combined... 

Discovery Green concludes five wheeling deals across resources, property and hospitality sectors

South African electricity trader Discovery Green has confirmed that it has signed supply agreements for wheeled electricity with five companies in the mining, property and hospitality sectors,... 

Eskom says delaying update to tariff structure will entrench incorrect price signals

Eskom has appealed to the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) not to again postpone the implementation of a new retail tariff plan (RTP), warning that any delay would further entrench... 

New abnormal

In normal times, the State of the Nation Address (SoNA) would be the dominant political event in South Africa during the week of its delivery. These are far from normal times, however, so the SoNA... 

Forced removals will never again be allowed, Ramaphosa insists as Trump’s order places spotlight on land rights

President Cyril Ramaphosa insists that South Africans know the pain of forced removals and will, thus, never again allow land to be confiscated – a position that he said was enshrined in the... 

Soon to be launched grid-funding instrument can be private participation template for all SoEs – Ramokgopa

Electricity and Energy Minister Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says the private sector participation framework being developed for the transmission sector will be unveiled within five weeks, while... 

Steenhuisen urges unity in face of ‘new threat’ from US, while calling for changes to expropriation law and equity rules

Democratic Alliance leader John Steenhuisen has called on the country to unite in the face of a “new threat” of possible US tariffs and even sanctions, following a rapid deterioration in relations... 

Energy council launches ‘Energise Mzansi’ information campaign

The Energy Council of South Africa has launched a communications campaign dubbed ‘Energise Mzansi’, which it says will seek to improve “energy transition literacy” amid rapid structural changes in... 

TNPA signs 25-year operator agreement for South Africa’s first LNG import terminal

South Africa’s State-owned Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) has signed a 25-year terminal operator agreement with Zululand Energy Terminals (ZET) for the development of the country's first...