Ramaphosa announces measures to ease power woes
President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced steps he says will
reduce the impact of load shedding on the economy.
He was speaking on Thursday on government interventions to aid economic recovery, saying addressing the country's energy challenges is key towards achieving economic growth.
Ramaphosa's announced that Schedule 2 of the Electricity Regulation Act will be amended to increase the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) licensing threshold for embedded generation projects from 1 MW to 100 MW.
"This intervention reflects our determination to take the necessary action to achieve energy security and reduce the impact of load shedding on businesses and households across the country,” Ramaphosa said.
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He reiterated that government is committed to tackling the energy crisis head-on.
"This will remove a significant obstacle to investment in embedded generation projects. Generators will also be allowed to wheel electricity through the transmission grid, subject to wheeling charges and connection agreements with Eskom and relevant municipalities.
"However, generation projects will still need to obtain a grid connection permit to ensure that they meet all of the requirements for grid compliance.”
The change will be gazetted within the next 60 days.
