Projects to help South Africa’s electricity crisis are stalling – here’s why

Several renewable energy projects in South Africa, selected by government over a year ago to address the country’s electricity shortages, are facing challenges in reaching financial closure.  

These projects, totaling over 1,000 megawatts in capacity, are experiencing delays due to increased costs and limited grid capacity. Globeleq CEO Mike Scholey highlighted these issues, noting that the projects are struggling to move forward in delivering renewable energy due to rising financing and other expenses.  

The delays come at a time when South Africa is grappling with frequent power cuts caused by breakdowns in state-owned Eskom’s coal-fired power plants.  

Lack of grid connections and the exclusion of wind stations in the latest bid round have further hindered project advancement.  

Scholey suggested that one potential solution could be selling electricity directly to private consumers instead of relying on Eskom.  

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