published on 14/07/08
About 185 MW of South Africa’s electricity could be generated by wind in 2010. With power utility Eskom’s current installed capacity measuring 38 000 MW, this will be about 0, 5percent of capacity.
Government has set a target of generating 15 percent of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2014, with this figure including wind, as well as other forms of renewable energy, such as solar and hydropower.
South Africa inaugurated its first wind farm in May, with another two on the drawing board.
The first is the R75-million, 5, 2-MW Darling wind farm, in the Western Cape.
If everything goes according to plan, the second wind farm will also be in the Western Cape, near St Helena Bay.
The Western Cape Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, the Saldanha municipality, the Seeland Development Trust, nongovernmental organisation Oxfam UK, and Genesis Eco-Energy have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a 80-MW wind farm at a cost of R850-million.
Construction could start as early as June next year.
Power utility Eskom is also planning a wind farm, to be constructed near Koekenaap, in the Vredendal area, also in the Western Cape.
The project involves the development of a wind farm with an initial capacity of 100 MW, which is likely to increase to 200 MW.
The completion date has been set as 2010.
Costs are not clear, but Eskom has signed a finance agreement for a 20-year, R1,25-billion loan from French development agency AFD for the partial financing of the project.
Donor funding plays a prominent role in the development of South Africa’s wind farms, especially from European countries where wind energy is already well established.
The Darling wind farm was developed by private group Darling Independent Power Producer, State-owned energy company Central Energy Fund and the Development Bank of Southern Africa, with the government of Denmark contributing about R27-million to the project as a grant.
Denmark is considered a global giant when it comes to wind energy, with about 20% of the Scandinavian country’s electricity consumption of 32 000 MW generated by wind, growing to 25% next year, and a possible 50percent by 2025.
Rising energy costs and increasing global concern about harmful emissions caused by traditional fossil fuels have seen Denmark focus strongly on implementing renewable energy programmes in the last decade.
However, a sharper focus on renewable energy on a global scale also presents some pertinent economic opportunities to countries able to develop the technology to support the green revolution.
Coal and oil have been profitable industries for decades, and why should this be different for renewable energy