Cape Town - President Cyril Ramaphosa has reaffirmed the government's commitment to the Just Energy Transition (JET) investment plan which he said would be at an affordable pace.
Ramaphosa was addressing the 1 300 delegates who attended the Investment Conference at the Sandton Convention Centre on Thursday.
Ramaphosa announced that the optimistic R1.2 trillion five-year target had been reached in a drive to create jobs and drive economic growth.
“This 5th South Africa Investment Conference affirms local and international investor confidence in the structural reforms we have been driving to improve the business environment.
The energy sector remains our foremost priority.
“Even as we work to improve the performance of our existing coal-fired power stations to address load shedding, we remain committed to a just energy transition and our target of achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
“We will implement our Just Energy Transition Investment Plan, which outlines our investment needs to support a just and inclusive transition towards cleaner forms of energy.
We will undertake this just transition at a pace our country can afford and in a manner that advances our developmental objectives and ensures energy security.
“Our immediate focus is on improving the performance of our existing coal-fired power stations as they continue to provide the base-load of our energy,” he said.
Ramaphosa admitted that the unreliable electricity supply had weakened business and consumer confidence, tainting international perceptions about the country.
Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel said that when the target was first set, it was not anticipated that the world would experience Covid-19, the July unrest and challenges brought by climate change, among others.
Energy expert Hilton Trollip said that the government should continue to attract investment into energy and increase the capacity of the grid.
“One of the big bottlenecks for getting electricity into SA is the grid capacity. As part of that, much of the Just Energy Transition Partnership investment plan is investment in the transmission grid, but we haven’t seen that starting to happen yet – the number one priority should be trying to get more capacity in the transmission grid.”
Independent economist Duma Gqubule said the government should take the lead and invest in energy and infrastructure before expecting others to do so. “The government has not given us the plan on how they will increase the investment.
“The South African government has to show more confidence in their own economy, then other people join in. And currently they are showing zero, with the notion that they have a budget crisis.
“We need to grow this economy urgently and our priorities right now are energy, and transport and water infrastructure,” Gqubule said.
Cape Times