SA will have to close either all its coal-fired power stations or Sasol’s coal-to-liquids plant by 2050 to stay within its carbon budget of 14 gigatonnes, Jesse Burton, a researcher at the University of Cape Town’s Energy Research Centre, says. In any event, SA cannot build more coal-fired power stations if it is to meet its commitments under the Paris agreement to reduce its share of emissions of greenhouse gases to keep the increase in global temperatures below 2ºC above preindustrial levels by 2100, she said on Monday at a seminar on Life After Coal hosted by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER). The Department of Energy recently announced two successful bids in the coal-fired independent power producer programme (IPP) and Eskom, the country’s biggest carbon emitter, is studying the feasibility of extending the lives of its ageing coal-fired power stations. Robyn Hugo, the head of the Centre for Environmental Rights’s pollution and climate change programme, said SA was one o...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.