Cape Town - The huge potential of electricity generation in Africa was highlighted in a series of keynote addresses at the second Power-Gen Africa conference that started in Cape Town on Monday.
Also highlighted was the dearth of supply. As South Africa’s deputy director general in the energy ministry Dr Wolsey Barnard noted, the continent’s total capacity was matched by that of just Germany and Denmark combined.
Barnard was standing in for Energy Minister Ben Martins, who was originally billed to address the conference. He stressed the need for pan-African cooperation to capitalise on the various opportunities that exist, from geo-thermal generation in the Great Rift region to gas and the potential not just of the Inga project, but the Congo River.
Such projects lie in the future, but a memorandum of understanding has already been signed regarding the development of Grand Inga, 50km inland from the mouth of the river. This, if and when it came on stream, could generate 40 000 megawatts (MW) of electricity. However, the potential of the river was for a capacity of up to 100 000 MW.
In the meantime, Barnard stressed that despite economic and other problems, progress has been made on the home front, with the renewable energy programme now making a 3 400 MW contribution to the grid. The world’s biggest coal-fired power stations, Medupi and Kusile, are also on track.
The need now is to build and fund new power generation, not only to provide for the 3 million South African households that still do not have electrical power, but also to ensure that the country “does not miss out on the next growth cycle”.
With only 31% of people in sub-Saharan Africa connected to electrical power, it is essential to bring light to the darkest continent.
Also highlighted was the dearth of supply. As South Africa’s deputy director general in the energy ministry Dr Wolsey Barnard noted, the continent’s total capacity was matched by that of just Germany and Denmark combined.
Barnard was standing in for Energy Minister Ben Martins, who was originally billed to address the conference. He stressed the need for pan-African cooperation to capitalise on the various opportunities that exist, from geo-thermal generation in the Great Rift region to gas and the potential not just of the Inga project, but the Congo River.
Such projects lie in the future, but a memorandum of understanding has already been signed regarding the development of Grand Inga, 50km inland from the mouth of the river. This, if and when it came on stream, could generate 40 000 megawatts (MW) of electricity. However, the potential of the river was for a capacity of up to 100 000 MW.
In the meantime, Barnard stressed that despite economic and other problems, progress has been made on the home front, with the renewable energy programme now making a 3 400 MW contribution to the grid. The world’s biggest coal-fired power stations, Medupi and Kusile, are also on track.
The need now is to build and fund new power generation, not only to provide for the 3 million South African households that still do not have electrical power, but also to ensure that the country “does not miss out on the next growth cycle”.
With only 31% of people in sub-Saharan Africa connected to electrical power, it is essential to bring light to the darkest continent.