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WATCH: A new era of renewable energy in SA

Cape Town – One of the successful renewable energy independent power producers (RE IPPs) selected by the Department of Energy last week said their initiatives won’t ease load shedding any time soon, but will lead to a new era of energy consumption in the country.

Co-founder of G7 Renewable Energies Dr Killian Hagemann, whose 140 MW On-shore Roggeveld Wind Farm in the Karoo was one of the 13 preferred bidders, spoke to News24Live presenter Nick Pawson this week about his project, IPPs and the energy challenge facing South Africa.

READ: SA to become global leader of renewables - IPP bid winner

In Part 1, Hagemann said the RE IPP is an internationally-acclaimed programme tasked with bringing a variety of energy projects online.

“It’s a very successful programme that has been running over the years,” he said. “It’s won numerous international awards and it’s one of the most exciting renewable programmes worldwide.”

Watch Part 1:

In Part 2, Hagemann said renewables have a bright future in South Africa.

“It’s now proven that it’s cost competitive; it can be constructed on time and on budget, with quite significant socio-economic spin-offs,” he said.

“It would have helped a lot if government had brought on IPPs 10 years ago, instead of starting serious moves four years ago, but then again, 10 years ago we didn’t have a crisis and it always tends to work out that way.”

Hagemann said load shedding would continue for longer than two years: “It will take a long time to turn around all these historical problems."

Even though IPPs are quicker to build than power stations, they will still take a couple of years from inception to delivering electricity, he explained.

“The historical planning quagmire has now got us into this positon and it will take us a couple of years to get out,” he said.

Watch Part 2:

In Part 3, Hagemann reveals how he was the first person who ever created a wind atlas, which was a part of his PhD.

“It was based on that knowledge that we then commercialised G7 … and starting developing projects in those very promising areas [that we identified through the wind atlas],” he said.

Watch Part 3:

* Be a part of the load shedding survival guide. Tell us how your business or household is responding to the power crisis or share ideas that could stimulate action.

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