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Post-apartheid, the South African economy remains characterised by persistent unemployment and world-leading inequality. Transitioning towards more equal and inclusive economic outcomes is hampered by an industrial base concentrated in powerful firms in upstream resource-based carbon-intensive sectors. Pursuing industrialisation in the context of the push towards decarbonisation and sustainability by significant trading partners depends on a massive investment programme in renewable energy and specific high-emitting sectors and developing linkages between sectors to target a just, equitable, and inclusive transition that tackles the country’s deep-rooted inequalities. This paper evaluates South Africa’s main development finance institution, the Industrial Development Corporation’s role in green industrialisation in South Africa. It investigates whether the investments made and the orientation of the IDC positively impacts the structural transformation of the economy, using disclosed and publicly available data. It suggests a set of criteria with which the IDC can assess the transformational impacts of its climate change funding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon dioxide (CO2), whose atmospheric volume has been increasing, is the principal greenhouse gas (GHG) that causes global warming and climate change. Climate change from increasing greenhouse gases (GHGs) has broad health and environmental influences. Human-emitted GHGs constitute a significant cause of global warming. The main objective of this article is to assess the influence of technological innovation, economic growth, fossil energy use, renewable energy consumption, and globalisation on CO2 emissions (CO2Es) in South Africa over the observation period 1990–2020. The Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (DOLS) estimator was implemented to examine the relationship between the constituents. The study results indicate that economic growth, fossil energy use, technological innovation, and globalisation boost CO2Es, whereas renewable energy consumption reduces CO2Es. The output of the canonical cointegrating regression and fully modified least squares estimators also supports the output of the DOLS estimator. We concluded that, in South Africa, a rise in economic growth, fossil energy use, technological innovation, and globalisation results in an upsurge in CO2Es. In contrast, an increase in renewable energy consumption leads to a reduction in CO2Es. This research work contributes to the discourse on CO2Es in the South African context. The study recommends that policymakers in South Africa should design policies that foster the formation of a low-carbon country, the consumption of renewable energy, and the implementation of environment-friendly technological innovations that reduce the use of fossil energy. Highlights: • This study assessed the impact of economic growth, technological innovation, fossil energy use, renewable energy consumption, and globalisation on CO2Es in South Africa. • The analysis revealed that economic growth, fossil energy use, technological innovation, and globalisation boost CO2Es, whereas renewable energy consumption reduces CO2Es. • There is a need to incorporate policies that promote the development of a low-carbon economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivated by South Africa's need for the transition to a net-zero economy, this study investigates the integration of renewable energy sources (RESs) into oil refineries, considering the unique challenges and opportunities therein. The research focuses on optimising RES allocation using particle swarm optimisation (PSO), a data-driven approach that adapts to real-time operational conditions. Traditional energy management systems often struggle with the inherent variability of RESs, leading to suboptimal energy distribution and increased emissions. Therefore, this study proposes a PSO-based renewable energy allocation strategy specifically designed for oil refineries. It considers factors like the levelised cost of energy, geographical location, and available technology. The methodology involves formulating the optimisation problem, developing a PSO model, and implementing it in a simulated oil refinery environment. The results demonstrate significant convergence of the PSO algorithm, leading to an optimal configuration for integrating RESs and achieving cost reductions and sustainability goals. The optimisation result of ZAR 4,457,527.00 achieved through iterations is much better than the result of ZAR 4,829,638.88 acquired using linear programming as the baseline model. The mean cost, indicating consistent performance, has remained at its original value of ZAR 4,457,527.00, highlighting the convergence. The key findings include the average distance measurement decreasing from 4.2 to 3.4, indicating particle convergence; the swarm diameter decreasing from 4.7 to 3.8, showing swarm concentration on promising solutions; the average velocity decreasing from 7.8 to 4.25, demonstrating refined particle movement; and the optimum cost function achieved at ZAR 4,457,527 with zero standard deviation, highlighting stability and optimal solution identification. This research offers a valuable solution for oil refineries seeking to integrate RESs effectively, contributing to South Africa's transition to a sustainable energy future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa is an energy-intensive developing country in Africa and ranked as the 1st and 14th emitter of greenhouse gas (GHG) in Africa and the world, respectively. The abundance and availability of coal in South Africa make it the mainstay primary source of energy contributing 56% of national total GHG emissions. This paper focused on the duo of energy generation and emission associated with coal processing and utilization in South Africa, and the urgent need to advance coal processing technologies marked by high carbon footprints in consonance with the sustainable development goals. Different gasification techniques and their performances have been compiled and discussed. The economic, environmental impact, energetic, and exergetic characteristics of existing hydrogen production technologies for renewable and non-renewable energy sources have been examined along with hydrogen production from plasma gasification of coal. Hydrogen production via coal or coal/biomass plasma gasification technology (nuclear-, wind-, PV solar-, and concentrated solar power-driven) in addition to carbon capture technology for transforming the captured CO 2 into value-added products appears to be the most viable option to considerably reduce emissions and meet the energy demand of South Africa. This proposed technology can be pivotal to achieving a low-carbon economy (medium-term) and transition to hydrogen economy (long-term) as championed by the global sustainable development agenda. Conclusively, hydrogen (stored in different forms e.g., liquid hydrogen, ammonia, and organic hydride) seems to find more applications (in the space industry, transport, energy storage, defense industry, etc.) than coal owing to its immediate use in distribution/demand centers and remote areas. • Coal is the primary energy source of South Africa and key driver of national CO 2 emissions. • Traditional coal gasification technologies are marked by high CO 2 emissions. • Coal plasma gasification technology is a viable option for low-carbon energy economy. • Hydrogen production via coal or coal/biomass plasma gasification technology leads to zero-carbon economy. • This immensely supports the drive towards attaining the sustainable development goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy has emerged as a promising solution to address the challenges of climate change, energy security, and socio-economic development. South Africa, with its abundant renewable energy resources, has made significant strides in the utilization of renewable energy over the past decade. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the progress of renewable energy advancement in South Africa, examining the policies, initiatives, and achievements in various renewable energy sectors. This study explores the country's transition from a heavily coal-dependent energy system to a diversified and sustainable energy mix. It analyses the growth of renewable energy technologies, such as wind power and solar photovoltaic (PV), highlighting the key milestones, challenges, and opportunities. Furthermore, this paper discusses the role of government support, regulatory frameworks, and private sector investments in driving renewable energy deployment in South Africa. Finally, it identifies the prospects and potential areas for further advancement in the renewable energy sector. This review aims to contribute to the understanding of South Africa's renewable energy journey and provides valuable insights for policy-makers, researchers, and stakeholders involved in the sustainable energy transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy is essential for crucial development in Africa. The current electricity shortages and load shedding in South Africa show that the country faces significant challenges in reaching positive economic growth. For industries to operate sustainably, an innovative mechanism must be tailored to solve the negative impacts of industrial energy use, particularly climate change. This study aims to show how renewable energy technologies can provide new economic opportunities, contribute to higher standards of living, and reduce the impacts of society on ecosystems, among other things. This paper presents a feasibility analysis and optimization of new energy technologies by designing and simulating a grid-connected PV system for sustainable development. PV Syst software (PV Syst 6.8.8) was used to simulate and optimize the PV system. The software was employed to design and model the PV systems, calculating energy production, economic performance, and environmental impact. Using simulation data, the researchers compared PV system performance across three scenarios and identified the optimal system. Scenario A was chosen as the best system, with an energy production of 1720 MWh/year. Overall, the findings of this study suggest that grid-connected PV systems are a feasible and sustainable option for meeting South Africa's energy needs. By implementing the results and recommendations, the government, investors, and community can work together to develop and deploy a successful PV system that will benefit all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines governance strategies to address South Africa's persistent electricity infrastructure challenges, particularly recurring blackouts. It centres on the crucial role of the President in orchestrating effective energy service delivery. Drawing on historical approaches and employing intersectionality theory, it identifies key areas for improvement. Through secondary data research from various sources, including textbooks and journals, the paper advocates for prioritising renewable energy, enhancing accountability, and fostering stakeholder collaboration. The conclusions underscore the necessity of combined efforts among policymakers, officials, and stakeholders to stimulate investment, optimise infrastructure, and ensure universal electricity access. The paper's novelty lies in its comprehensive analysis within an intersectional framework, offering actionable recommendations for navigating South Africa's electricity landscape. Through embracing these strategies, South Africa can envision a future of reliable, accessible electricity, vital for societal well-being and holistic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Governments and energy providers all over the world are moving towards the use of renewable energy sources. Solar photovoltaic (PV) energy is one of the providers' favourite options because it is comparatively cheaper, clean, available, abundant, and comparatively maintenance-free. Although the PV energy source has many benefits, its output power is dependent on continuously changing weather and environmental factors, so there is a need to forecast the PV output power. Many techniques have been employed to predict the PV output power. This work focuses on the short-term forecast horizon of PV output power. Multilayer perception (MLP), convolutional neural networks (CNN), and k-nearest neighbour (kNN) neural networks have been used singly or in a hybrid (with other algorithms) to forecast solar PV power or global solar irradiance with success. The performances of these three algorithms have been compared with other algorithms singly or in a hybrid (with other methods) but not with themselves. This study aims to compare the predictive performance of a number of neural network algorithms in solar PV energy yield forecasting under different weather conditions and showcase their robustness in making predictions in this regard. The performance of MLPNN, CNN, and kNN are compared using solar PV (hourly) data for Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The choice of location is part of the study parameters to provide insight into renewable energy power integration in specific areas in South Africa that may be prone to extreme weather conditions. Our data does not have lots of missing data and many data spikes. The kNN algorithm was found to have an RMSE value of 4.95%, an MAE value of 2.74% at its worst performance, an RMSE value of 1.49%, and an MAE value of 0.85% at its best performance. It outperformed the others by a good margin, and kNN could serve as a fast, easy, and accurate tool for forecasting solar PV output power. Considering the performance of the kNN algorithm across the different seasons, this study shows that kNN is a reliable and robust algorithm for forecasting solar PV output power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa possesses extremely rich renewable energy resources, including solar energy and wind energy, in spite of this, South Africa traditionally relies on coal as its primary energy source. Recently, South Africa confronted with severe electricity shortage. With pressure of power shortage and the transition to low- carbon energy, South Africa has been actively promoting the development of renewable energy, aiming to diversify its energy structure. China, as the world's leading country in the development and utilization of renewable energy, has long been committed to helping South Africa achieve renewable energy development. This article reviews the cooperation progress between China and South Africa in renewable energy, and provides an in-depth analysis of the challenges currently faced by both sides. To address such challenges, it is suggested to strengthen the design of top-level cooperation mechanisms, create diverse collaboration platforms, prioritize the exchange and collaboration of scientific talents. This paper aims to provide a typical reference for deepening renewable energy cooperation between China and South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The African continent is confronted with interconnected challenges of water, energy, and food insecurity, particularly affecting marginalized urban residents. Decentralized Water-Energy-Food (WEF) systems have emerged as potential solutions to alleviate these issues exacerbated by climate change. Despite scholarly acknowledgment of constraints related to WEF, there is a growing global trend towards trials of innovative decentralized WEF systems. This paper contributes to the body of research aimed at demonstrating the applicability of decentralised WEF systems at local level, by showcasing the potential of such systems to enhance water, energy and food security in informal settlements. Focusing on Diepsloot slums in Johannesburg, South Africa, the paper applied space analysis, least-cost modeling of sack farming, and renewable energy technologies in providing WEF solutions that demonstrate feasibility, sustainability and decentralised solutions for informal settlements, compared to the popular broad-based solutions that often neglect these marginalised communities. Utilizing Geographic Information Systems (GIS), AquaCrop crop modeling, financial analysis, and linear optimization modelling urbs, the study provides a comprehensive analysis of past climate trends, water sources, spatial plant arrangements, and a proposed community centre. The proposed Phezulu 'Up' growers' model and the positive return on investment further demonstrate the feasibility of decentralized WEF systems. Policymakers are encouraged to promote these WEF systems to bolster urban livelihoods and achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), notably SDG 2, 6, and 7, in marginalized African urban areas. Recommendations and areas of further research include looking into issues of community engagement, partnerships, risk mitigation, strategies for equity and inclusivity and local knowledge integration during WEF implementation, and robust critique of WEF practical interventions and comparative analysis with other WEF models. Overall, the study provides a blueprint for inclusive and sustainable urban development, emphasizing the importance of localized WEF solutions and community empowerment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global economy faces increasing environmental challenges and economic instability, prompting the adoption of innovative energy technologies as a crucial strategy. This study addresses the urgent quest for sustainable development in South Africa, specifically by evaluating renewable energy solutions. This study utilizes a comprehensive literature analysis to examine the current state of renewable energy infrastructure, policy frameworks, technological advancements, and economic viability within the South African context. Synthesizing insights from the existing literature on the interplay between energy, economy, and technology, this study aims to provide a refined understanding of renewable energy solutions' feasibility and integration potential. The exploration of these solutions in South Africa identifies key opportunities, challenges, and implications for sustainable development. These findings offer valuable guidance for policymakers, researchers, and stakeholders in advancing a country's transition towards a sustainable energy future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the ways to increase the participation and penetration of renewable energy resources is to bring down the cost of these abundant resources for easy implementation and affordability. In this paper, a generalized reduced gradient (GRG) non‐linear optimization algorithm is implemented to solve a tri‐objective optimal design and sizing of a low‐cost hybrid mix consisting of a photovoltaic (PV) power plant, biomass power plant (BPP), and battery energy system for water pumping load applications in the University of Johannesburg, South Africa considering four different hybrids of biomass‐battery, PV‐battery, PV‐biomass, and PV‐biomass‐battery. The optimization model considers available energy and battery state of charge while minimizing least cost of energy (LCOE), carbon dioxide emission (tCO2eq), and loss of power supply probability (LPSP) including carbon tax incentive and penalty. The results when compared against particle swarm optimization (PSO) show the superiority of GRG over PSO with an optimal combination of PV‐biomass‐battery mix with optimal size of the PV power plant as 360.50 kW, the BPP 181.08 kW, and the battery size of 6,553.60 kWh giving a minimal optimal LCOE, CO2 emission and LPSP of 0.018 $/kWhr (with carbon tax), and 0.016 $/kWhr (without carbon tax), 28,067.73tCO2eq tCO2eq, and 1.7%, respectively. These values give a competitive advantage compared to the unit cost and values of CO2 emission and LPSP currently in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stochastic programming has become increasingly vital in energy applications, especially in the context of the growing need for renewable energy solutions. This paper presents a significant advancement in this field by introducing an efficient and robust algorithm for optimally sizing hybrid renewable energy systems. Utilizing a two-stage stochastic programming approach, the proposed algorithm addresses the challenges posed by the unpredictability of renewable energy sources. The proposed solution leverages the three-block alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM), a cutting-edge technique that facilitates parallel computation and enhances computational efficiency. The distinctiveness of this method lies in its ability to solve complex stochastic optimization problems without compromising the mathematical integrity of the model. This is achieved by applying first-order optimality conditions, ensuring both robustness and efficacy. To demonstrate the practical applicability and superiority of the algorithm, a case study was conducted in a rural area of South Africa. The proposed algorithm was applied to design an optimal hybrid renewable energy system, and its performance was compared against traditional methods such as progressive hedging and Monte Carlo techniques. Results affirm the superiority of the approach, saving approximately 8.16% capital cost when compared to progressive hedging. In addition, the proposed algorithm outperforms the Monte Carlo method both in terms of CPU time and the number of cost function evaluations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The country has experienced industry shutdowns, decreased productivity, educational setbacks, increased unemployment rates, and negative healthcare outcomes. Load-shedding in South Africa is primarily caused by inadequate maintenance, internal mismanagement, corruption, and a lack of skills. This issue has had a significant impact on small businesses, as they often lack the necessary resources to handle power surges, equipment damage, and the costs associated with replacing stock. This paper explores how load-shedding has impacted the South African economy from an entrepreneurial perspective. The research is qualitative and exploratory in nature, and it was found that load-shedding has had a significant impact on businesses' finances, resources, and performance. Load-shedding in South Africa has had a severe impact on the daily lives of people, causing disruptions in businesses, households, and the overall economy. Eskom, the primary supplier of energy in South Africa, has been facing significant challenges in meeting the growing demand for electrical energy, leading to job losses, decreased productivity, and a loss of billions of rands. Small businesses have been particularly affected, with an estimated 75% of them failing after being operational for less than three years due to load-shedding. To ensure small businesses have electricity to operate during load-shedding it is recommended that small businesses adopt alternative energy sources like solar power to increase the businesses' independence and mitigate the effects of load-shedding. The South African government should also encourage and support small businesses to collaborate with successful renewable energy companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A social licence to operate and corporate social responsibility are often applied voluntarily to ensure a positive relationship between businesses and communities. But South Africa's Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Programme makes investment in local socio‐economic development a contractual obligation. To assess the implications of this legalised approach to CSR and the social licence to operate, between September 2019 and January 2020 we conducted seven focus group discussions and 24 key informant interviews in two towns in South Africa's Northern Cape province. The data were analysed thematically and triangulated with data on crime, municipal finance and house prices. Our concerns about the legalised approach are that it does not require local consent; it reduces local development to a needs analysis; it does not require local collaborative planning, despite adverse consequences such as social disruption; it bypasses local organisation and accountability; it does not provide cheaper local electricity; and it offers no guidelines for decommissioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The need to swiftly transition to clean energy and expand electricity access is pressing; however, the goals of SDG7 are unlikely to be met by 2030, with the UN specifically mentioning land‐locked states as being off track. Through the conceptual lens of 'leapfrogging' fossil fuels, straight from traditional fuel sources to renewable energy, this paper discusses the relationship between electricity production and independence. It makes a conceptual contribution by introducing the term 'energy independence through leapfrogging', which is used to characterise the process of reducing dependency on another country – in the case of Eswatini, electricity is supplied by South Africa. Drawing from empirical research in Eswatini involving document analysis and in‐depth interviews, this paper discusses the potential for the country to move from being primarily an importer of electricity to generating its own supply from renewable sources. With Eswatini's current electricity supply from South Africa at risk/expiring in 2025, this research argues that the country faces a moment of opportunity for Eswatini to build further generation capacity, with a recommended focus on solar energy. The paper identifies potential challenges/barriers to this energy transition, examining power generation, storage, maintenance and affordability as key areas for intervention. Drawing on previous theories of electricity access, the paper argues that 'access' to electricity requires consideration of the affordability and reliability of energy systems. Eswatini is an understudied geographical area, and this paper makes a contribution to the literature on energy transitions by examining the specific circumstances attending this transition and examining these with relevance for other land‐locked nations in sub‐Saharan Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy sources are seen as a sustainable solution to the problem of global energy security. Among the renewable energy sources, wave energy has great prospects for development in a few countries, including South Africa. However, South Africa's wave energy projects are still underinvested in practice compared to wind energy and solar PV. This paper investigates several questions related to the influence of both quantitative and qualitative factors on the effectiveness of wave energy projects (WEPs) and the appropriate placement for WEP in South Africa. For this purpose, a novel two-phase framework novel two-phase data envelopment analysis (DEA) supporting integrated multiple criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework is proposed. The first phase aims to identify potential locations for WEPs and calculate the technical advantage of these locations using the DEA model. In the second phase, other qualitative criteria, which affect the sustainable development of WEPs, are identified. Based on expert surveys, potential locations are analyzed and ranked by a novel integrated MCDM approach called OPA-EDAS. In the proposed approach, the advantages of the Ordinal Priority Approach (OPA) are utilized to simultaneously determine the weight of the criteria and prioritize the alternatives. However, the results of OPA depend on the priorities of the experts participating in the assessment. Therefore, this study attempted to overcome that by integrating the EDAS technique to assess the expertise. Furthermore, the DEA model is applied to increase the objectivity of the results. In addition, the robustness of the study's findings is validated by comparing the location with upcoming WEPs in South Africa. The result shows that the coast of Cape Nature Walker Bay has the most effectiveness for South Africa's WEPs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world's climate‐related policies need to be revised to combat environmental issues. Therefore, adopting renewable energy technologies in conjunction with energy efficiency measures are needed to make safe pathways to reduce over 90% of energy related CO2. In this context, this study intends to assess the influence of foreign direct investment (FDI), economic growth, and banking and development on renewable energy consumption in South Africa from 1970 to 2020. The study uses a novel 'bootstrap Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL)' testing to empirically analyse the short and long links among the tested variables. The ARDL estimations demonstrate a FDI and economic growth have positive effect on renewable energy consumption. Furthermore, the outcomes reveal that banking sector development affects positively renewable energy use in long run. Therefore, it is suggested that government and playmakers of South Africa must make more efforts to link the economic and baking development with renewable energy by investing capital and funds in renewable energy infrastructure. It will not only boost the economy of the country but also provide an opportunity to clean and green the environment with decreasing rate of greenhouse gases emission like carbon dioxide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increase in population and urbanization have resulted in an increase in the number of wastewater treatment plants in South Africa. Although wastewater treatment plants serve a great purpose in the reduction of environmentally threatening contaminants from wastewater, the increase in energy consumption by these plants raises concerns about climate change. Thus, there has been a rise in literature attempting to map the energy consumption of wastewater treatment plants to help decision-making in the search for alternative energy sources to promote self-sufficient wastewater treatment plants. There has been a proposition of capturing energy from sewers to mitigate the greenhouse gas emanating from energy consumption by wastewater treatment plants. Literature has proven that sewers can produce 10 times the energy required to operate wastewater treatment plants with the correct factors considered including the characteristics of the wastewater being treated, the technology used, and the management practices employed. This has resulted in a rise in the number of studies investigating biogas production from wastewater treatment plants. Although sewage has been proven to be able to produce sufficient biogas to support the energy requirements of wastewater treatment plants to go off-grid. There are still challenges in the implementation of self-sufficient wastewater treatment plants especially in developing countries such as technological barriers and capital investments. Therefore, this paper will investigate possible ways of making wastewater treatment plants more energy sustainable. Out of many approaches of making WWTP sustainable (resource recovery and energy efficiency improvements); energy generation is the main focus of this mini review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ageing of coal-fired power stations in South Africa has led to regular power outages. Therefore, the country will need to urgently increase its electricity capacity to meet further energy demand from growing urbanization and population growth. This challenge has increased interest in alternative energy sources, such as renewable energy (RE). South Africa is gradually implementing appropriate renewable energy practices, reducing carbon emissions, cleansing the air, and assuring a more sustainable future. This paper summarizes the availability, current state, and future potential of renewable energy choices in South Africa. This paper also evaluates specific policy measures and government actions aimed at eliminating barriers and increasing renewable energy deployment in the future. It also considers the South African network's specialized techno-economic analysis. The findings show that South Africa is still heavily reliant on coal, with 78% of the current installed capacity coming from coal power in 2022, compared to 9.3% for solar and wind energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa is currently grappling with a national energy crisis and the high infrastructure costs associated with expanding the national grid to remote areas. Simultaneously, the government has made substantial efforts to harness renewable energy technologies, particularly wind energy. The average wind speed in a specific region significantly influences the energy yield from wind turbines. The vast open inland terrains, mountainous regions, and coastal areas in the Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, and Western Cape provinces of South Africa possess the most substantial wind potential. It is imperative to initiate wind energy projects in these provinces to cater to a significant portion of the local electricity demand, especially in remote areas disconnected from the national grid. Wind energy generation is inherently stochastic, subject to variations in both time and space. Consequently, it is essential to gain a comprehensive understanding of the local wind patterns to assess the feasibility of utilizing wind resources. In the Eastern Cape Province, the Mthatha area still lags in household electrification, presenting an opportunity to electrify some households using wind energy. This study aimed to evaluate the wind resource potential for Mthatha area, utilizing data spanning from 2018 to 2023, provided by the South African Weather Services. Two distribution models, the two-parameter Weibull and three-parameter Weibull, were employed to characterize the provided wind data. To determine the parameters associated with each distribution model, two estimation methods, the Maximum Likelihood Method (MLM) and the Method of Moments (MOM), were utilized. The performance of these distribution models was assessed using the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) statistical indicator. The results showed that Mthatha area predominantly experiences low wind speeds, with an annual average wind speed of 3.30 m/s and an overall wind power density of approximately 48.48 W/m2. The prevailing winds predominantly originate from the south and east–southeast directions. Consequently, Mthatha is recommended for stand-alone applications, with the added suggestion of augmented wind turbines for the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The energy demand in African economies, including South Africa, is expected to double by 2040. The water-energy-food nexus, introduced at the Bonn 2011 conference, illustrates the interdependencies of these resources. In the case of South Africa, with its semi-arid climate and frequent power outages, this study focuses on the water-energy nexus. Water is necessary for electricity generation in coal-powered plants, while energy is required for water supply. Using system dynamics, the study models the current state of the nexus in South Africa and explores future scenarios considering population growth, GDP per capita, and water and energy intensities. The findings serve as a basis for discussing the country's allocation of scarce water and energy resources. Further research could examine South Africa's potential investment in renewable energy resources to solve the increasing energy demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy activities have increasingly become the central component of China's proposed green Belt and Road Initiative. Yet, scaling up these activities requires significant institutional changes of the current Chinese state and financial-industrial complex. Informed by a conceptual framework that builds on multi-level institutional analysis, we assess the institutional challenges constraining the scalability of Chinese renewable energy projects in South Africa and Ethiopia. Our study reveals that the institutional fragmentation and vacuum in China have led to the lack of a clear engagement strategy with African markets. In addition, the development of wind and solar energy projects in Africa is often taking place amid the ongoing and fast-changing energy sector governance, which is not yet appreciated by the key Chinese actors. We argue that promoting Chinese-backed renewable energy projects in Africa requires new institutional arrangements that can adapt to competitive and divergent local market conditions and regulatory changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the ongoing issue of load shedding in South Africa, with the primary significance being its impact on income inequality. It discusses how low-income households are disproportionately affected by power interruptions, leading to economic disparities and challenges in accessing essential services. It analysis also explores the potential exacerbation of income inequalities by policies aimed at addressing load shedding.

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) management is rapidly becoming a severe environmental problem worldwide. Developing countries, especially African cities, are the most affected due to inadequate resources to cope with increasing magnitude and complexity of the waste generated as well as the scarcity of land for disposal. As such, strategies which include waste-to-energy (WtE) generation to recover the potent energy from municipal waste could be a better option. This study sought to determine the sustainability of WtE projects for energy access to off-grid residents in the North-West province, South Africa. The study used a quantitative research design coupled with field observations and measurement of elements of the waste chain to generate primary data sets. The information was supplemented by secondary datasets on waste information and waste management at local municipalities. Results revealed that some of the classes of waste have the optimum calorific values and moisture content for WtE. The eligibility of a waste class to be used in WtE generation projects is dependent on the quantities generated. The results also indicate that using paper as fuel in the 240 tonnes/day WtE technology would cover more days of operation than plastics and rubber. Based on the 2020 estimated waste quantities, paper would last 234 days of generating about 6,944 GWh while plastics would last 177 days with energy output of 5, 207 GWh. Waste quantities generated in the North-West province could contribute to sustainable energy access to the off-grid informal settlement residents and advance waste management options through WtE. This study contributes to the literature on renewable energy and waste management in the context of green energy in South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The integration of solar and wind energy into the electrical grid has received global research attention due to their unpredictable characteristics. Because wind energy varies across all timescales of utility activity, renewable energy generation should be supplemented and enhanced, from real-time, minute-to-minute variations to annual alterations influencing long-termstrategy. Wind energy generation does not only fluctuate but is also challenging to accurately forecast the timeframes of significance to electricity decision makers; day-ahead and long-term making plans of framework sufficiency such as meeting the network peak load annually. A utility that integrates wind and solar energy into its electricity mix would understand how to adapt to uncertainty and variability in operations while sustaining grid stability. Due to hydropower's adaptability, a systemusing hydropower as one of its generating resources could be precisely adapted to absorb the variability of wind and solar energy. The objective of this research study is to create a hybrid system comprising hydro-wind and solar (Hybrid-HWS) integration for power balancing in an isolated electrical network in Klipkop village, Pretoria region, South Africa. The desirability of designing and building goaf storage tank in regard to capability, the fullness of line throughoutwater pumping, dispensing, storage tank spillage, and pressure difference throughout liquid flow within the storage tanks were preliminary assessed using geotechnical and weather forecasting data from a distinctive area of Klipkop town in Pretoria, South Africa. Different facility hours premised on daylight accessibility are scheduled to balance maximum load at early and late hours. However, in the scenario of electrical power, time shift requiring storage for extended periods of time, such as in terms of hours, Hybrid-HWS has been found to have a crucial role. The results of simulations showed a coordinated process design for Hybrid-HWS Energy Storage (ES) to determine everyday strategic planning in reducing the variability of the system resulting from wind-solar-pumped hydro ES output inadequacies and satisfy daily load demands. It could be recommended that by considering the adaptability characteristics, extremely rapidly, ramping, peaking support and maximum stabilizing aid of the system could be archived with pump-hydro into the energy mix which can provide specific guidelines for energy policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa's energy transition is underway and the country has adopted a just transition framework for its execution. However, the energy transition in South Africa is confronted by a multitude of socioeconomic challenges. This perspective focuses on urgent issues regarding South Africa's energy transition. The author argues that South Africa's energy transition needs a people‐centered approach; it must place the needs of all citizens at the forefront and leave no‐one behind. The transition must bring to the fore a new economic development pathway that is driven by renewable energy to create new sectors for economic growth, to create decent work, to reduce persisting energy inequalities and to address the ongoing energy crisis. Furthermore, developed economies will be essential in assisting South Africa with a financing deal for its energy transition. It remains to be seen whether the financing deal will indeed be realized. Also, there must be transparency between partners regarding the nature and structure of these deals, and that this finance be channeled to the most vulnerable victims of climate change. South Africa's energy transition model is the first of its kind globally; the world is watching keenly to see whether the country can succeed. Therefore, the challenge remains for South Africa to ensure that the energy transition addresses the country's socioeconomic challenges and prioritizes its people. This article is categorized under: Policy and Economics > Energy Transitions [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa first implemented rolling blackouts known as load shedding to protect the integrity and maintain stability of their ailing electrical grid over a decade ago. Since then, load shedding has become a daily occurrence, which South Africa plans to alleviate through the addition of grid-connected renewable generation. Significant renewable energy (RE) additions can however negatively affect a grid, prompting South Africa to develop RE-specific grid code requirements as mitigation. Given this strategy to address the country's supply challenges using RE, and the still unknown effects of the country's aggressive RE integration planned, South Africa must perform the necessary simulations tailored to the country's unique grid conditions, and local RE-specific grid code requirements to ensure a RE-driven solution are indeed viable. Prompted by the lack of a suitably tailorable simulation platform, this paper proceeds to discuss the development of a tailorable grid code-guided renewable power plant (RPP) behavioral studies testbed. The testing methodology involves feeding grid disturbance event data to an RPP modeled after Eskom's Sere wind farm in South Africa, which is operated in line with local RPP-specific grid code voltage and frequency requirements to assess the testbed's grid code-guided RPP operating approach. Results show the testbed to effectively distinguish between grid code-specified no-fault, fault ride-through, and trip conditions, operating the simulated RPP accordingly. Consequently, as compared to comparable RE integration simulation platforms, the reviewed testbed has the potential of producing individualized results, owing to its tailorable grid, RPP, and incorporated grid code guiding specifications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa is in a critical power situation and is in dire need of additional generation capacity. Thus, renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and hydropower should be evaluated to identify highpotential and cost-effective sites. Rivers in South Africa, as a water-scarce country, are already heavily impounded, meaning that there are limited sites available for conventional hydropower generation. Instead, novel solutions such as retrofitting hydropower installations to existing infrastructure, like existing dams, are required. To estimate the retrofit hydropower potential at dams, a set of five tools was developed using Python 3, known as the University of Pretoria Retrofit Hydropower Evaluation Software (UP-RHES). The UP-RHES screens potential sites where historic flow records are available, then downloads the required flow records from the national database and performs a first-order hydraulic assessment of the site, as well as a first-order life cycle cost analysis. By applying the UP-RHES to 118 dams operated by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), it was found that a total estimated hydropower potential of 128 MW with an annual energy output of between 385 and 469 GWh exists at South African dams. The Vaal, Pongolapoort, Goedertrouw and Blyderivierpoort Dams were found to be feasible sites with a combined capacity of 77 GWh/annum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The share of renewable energy is expected to increase in South Africa's energy mix. Motivated by concerns about renewable energy sprawl, this study quantifies the current and future (2050) land requirements for electricity generation in South Africa and evaluates the likely impact on natural biomes. Currently, around 340 km2 has been transformed for electricity generation (mainly coal-powered) and an additional 1 400 km2 is used for spacing requirements. Direct land use is expected to increase to 755–1080 km2 by 2050, and spacing requirements will increase to 10 700–16 750 km2 (0.9–1.4% of South Africa's land area). South Africa has excellent potential for renewable energy generation, with 36% and 57% of the land area being suitable for solar and wind development, respectively. Assuming that future developments are built on the most suitable land in the Renewable Energy Development Zones, the Nama-Karoo Biome will be most affected. It is concluded that concerns about renewable energy sprawl should not limit South Africa's renewable energy capacity expansion plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the nexus amid renewable energy, non-renewable energy consumption, CO2 emissions and economic growth in South Africa. VECM and Granger causality approach were employed in the paper. Empirical result suggested that carbon emissions granger cause GDPC uni-directionally. Essentially, From the various empirical estimation, it is discovered that CO2 has a positive impact on GDPC in the study. This shows that disregarding the ecological contamination cause by CO2 that animate the GDPC, which make it challenging for severe measure by government to control fossil fuel byproduct cause by non-environmentally friendly power in the framework. REN shows causality with GDPC in one direction, and that implies REN accessibility move with growth in GDPC. Since the review assessment results likewise exhibit that CO2 has a causality with economic growth in SA. The public authority needs to intiate severe guideline with respect to weighty fossil fuel byproduct innovation this would empower the turn of events and execution of more powerful and low-carbon innovation across all enterprises, eventually advancing economic growth in SA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

South Africa's energy network is under severe pressure due to low supply and overwhelming demand. With an increase in renewable energy providers, specifically wind energy, knowing how the supply can satisfy the electricity demand may relieve apprehensions. This research aims to provide insight into the wind energy supply of South Africa and question how well this supply meets the demand of South Africa. The methodology used in this work highlights the importance of access to public datasets to dispel misconceptions in the energy industry. Additionally, the work supports network planning and the arguments for increasing wind energy penetration on the South African grid. Wind profiles and the typical energy production of South African wind farms are compared to electricity demand. The geographical spacing of the operational wind farms is considered. It is observed that wind energy supply assists in the peak electricity hourly demand as well as seasonal peaks. Furthermore, South Africa's coast is analysed to determine the offshore wind power potential, where shallow and deep waters are considered. It is observed that South Africa has a high potential for offshore wind, even after losses are applied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In accordance with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Kyoto protocol and the United Nations Sustainable development goals (UNSDGs) on climate action (SDG-13), there has been a need across economies for transition from fossil-fuel-based energy sources such as coal energy consumption to cleaner energy options i.e., a transition to a low-carbon economy. To this end, the present study explores the asymmetric relationship between coal energy consumption, economic growth, rising urban population and emission level in South Africa. The present study span is conducted on an annual frequency basis from 1965-2018. This study applies the novel Non-linear Autoregressive distributed lag methodology (NARDL) for the highlighted variables. Empirical results validate the asymmetric relationship between the variables under review over the study period. The NARDL regression further shows positive shock by GDP increases CO2 emission level while negative impact affects otherwise in the long run. On the other hand, coal consumption positive shock exhibits a detrimental impact on environmental quality in South Africa. This is insightful for policymakers. The urban population shows non-significant effect on emission levels over the sampled period. The knowledge of both positive and negative shock effects of GDP, coal energy consumption and urban growth is vital for policy construction in terms of both economic and environmental sustainability. Thus, policy prescription ranges from energy transition to alternative and cleaner energy sources like renewables and responsible energy consumption (SDG-12) should be pursued in South Africa. More far-reaching environmental policies are highlighted in the concluding section. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid development of wind energy in southern Africa represents an additional threat to the already fragile populations of African vultures. The distribution of the vulnerable Cape Vulture Gyps coprotheres overlaps considerably with wind energy development areas in South Africa, creating conflicts that can hinder both vulture conservation and sustainable energy development. To help address this conflict and aid in the safe placement of wind energy facilities, we map the utilization distribution (UD) of this species across its distributional range. Using tracking data from 68 Cape Vultures collected over the last 20 years, we develop a spatially explicit habitat use model to estimate the expected UDs around known colonies. Scaling the UDs by the number of vultures expected to use each of the colonies, we estimate the Cape Vulture population utilization distribution (PUD) and determine its exposure to wind farm impacts. To complement our results, we model the probability of a vulture flying within the rotor sweep area of a wind turbine throughout the species range and use this to identify areas that are particularly prone to collisions. Overall, our estimated PUD correlates well with reporting rates of the species from the Southern African Bird Atlas Project, currently used to assess potential overlap between Cape Vultures and wind energy developments, but it adds important benefits, such as providing a spatial gradient of activity estimates over the entire species range. We illustrate the application of our maps by analyzing the exposure of Cape Vultures in the Renewable Energy Development Zones (REDZs) in South Africa. This application is a scalable procedure that can be applied at different planning phases, from strategic, nationwide planning to project‐level assessments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological degradation is a major challenge for all nations. The problem is particularly worrying for South Africa, which has recently suffered from various ecological catastrophes. Thus, the empirical study evaluates the nexus between CO2 emissions and financial development, renewable energy, economic growth and environmental-related technologies in South Africa utilizing data between 1980 and 2020. We employed autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) and time-varying causality to evaluate these connections. The results from the ARDL show that financial development and environmental-related technologies lessen CO2 emissions while economic progress intensifies CO2 emissions. Surprisingly, renewable energy does not mitigate CO2 emissions. Furthermore, the time-varying causality shows that all the independent variables can forecast CO2 emissions at different sub-periods. Finally, our results are resilient to various policy ramifications useful in reducing CO2 emissions and associated adverse ecological consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The South African government battles with global warming issues while attempting to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals − 7 & 13 (that is, affordable clean energy and climate change mitigation). To the best of our knowledge, no studies have focused exclusively on this research topic, and it is on this basis that in this article, the novel dynamic autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) simulations approach was employed for the purpose of estimating, simulating and plotting to investigate the CO 2 emissions-renewable energy consumption-militarisation-economic growth nexus in South Africa (SA). The study spans between 1960 and 2019 and applies frequency domain causality. The main findings suggest that: (i) there is a long-run equilibrium relationship between the variables; (ii) the causality results differ; (iii) the treadmill theory of destruction and the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis hold in SA. Overall, this study recommends a synergy between defence, renewable energy, growth and environmental policies in both the short- and long-run for the purpose of promoting and maintaining environmental quality in SA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the time–frequency nexus of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions with economic growth, nonrenewable (i.e., coal, natural gas, and oil), and renewable (i.e., hydro and geothermal) energy consumption. In this context, BRICS countries (namely, Brazil, Russian Federation, India, China, and South Africa), which are leading emerging countries, are included, and quarterly data from 1990/Q1 to 2019/Q4 is used. The study employs the wavelet coherence (WC) approach to explore the co-movement between the variables at different frequencies. The empirical results show that (i) there is a strong and positive co-movement between CO2 emission and economic growth; however, it is weak for Russia and South Africa in the medium and long-term; (ii) coal energy consumption is strongly and positively co-moved with CO2 emission for all BRICS countries; (iii) natural gas energy consumption is strongly and positively co-moved with CO2 emissions in Brazil, India, and China; however, it is weakly and positively co-moved in Russia and South Africa; (iv) oil energy consumption is strongly and positively co-moved with CO2 emissions in Brazil, India, and China; however, it changes a bit for Russia and South Africa; (v) hydro energy consumption is weakly and positively co-moved with CO2 emissions in general, whereas country-based results vary; (vi) geothermal energy consumption is also similar to hydro energy consumption. Thus, the WC results highlight the strong co-movement of economic growth and nonrenewable energy consumption with CO2 emissions, whereas renewable energy consumption has a relatively lower co-movement. Based on the results, policy implications are also discussed for BRICS countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite technological innovation and vast renewable energy sources in rural areas, a significant number of rural households are living in energy poverty, and there is a pressing need to come up with strategies to mitigate this. This paper presents an overview of the energy sources in the Eastern Cape Province, the status of renewable energy technologies and the household energy poverty coping strategies in rural areas. The analysis of this study is based on conducted studies on renewable technologies in the Eastern Cape. This paper aims to help to provide a deeper understanding in the selection of the most appropriate renewable energy technologies suited to rural households' energy needs and to fill the knowledge gap existing in renewable energy technologies to make it easier to map a way forward into the households' energy poverty coping strategies in the Eastern Cape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing demand for fuel in South Africa coupled with the depletion of fossil fuel reserves demonstrates the need for alternative energy sources. A renewable resource such as biomass can be optimized as an energy source. Wastewater sludge and bagasse have the energy potential to produce high calorific value biocoal; this will contribute to the supply of energy in South Africa. The synthesis of biocoal from wastewater sludge and bagasse through an artificial synthetic coal production process, i.e. hydrothermal carbonization, is preferred over other thermal conversion techniques as hydrothermal carbonization is capable of handling feed having a high (75--90%) moisture content. In this study, wastewater sludge and sugarcane bagasse were subjected to hydrothermal carbonization, and the effect of temperature was explored at 180, 210, 240 and 260°C. Variation of the ratio of dry sludge to bagasse of 100:0, 80:20, 60:40, 40:60, 20:80 and 0:100 and the composition of solid to liquid (solid loading wt%) of 1:10, 2:10, 3:10 and 4:10 (SB:H2O) corresponding to 9.09, 16.67, 23.08 and 28.57 wt% loading was investigated. The results obtained in this study reveal that solid loading, temperature, biomass type and ratio variation had a substantial impact on the yield and calorific value of the biocoal produced. The highest biocoal yield of 23.36 wt% was achieved at 210°C and derived from sludge/bagasse with a sludge content of 20%. Across all of the runs, the highest calorific value of 20.21 MJ kg-1 was achieved at 260°C when pure bagasse was employed (0% sludge content). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International trade has created more economic growth opportunities in the agriculture sector. The agricultural sector remains key to the South African economy, with a vibrant international market becoming available as the country's agriculture exports grow. However, the impacts of human-caused global warming have intensified as a result of increased greenhouse gas emissions, notably carbon dioxide (CO2), which negatively affects agricultural productivity and the economy. Considering the future energy resource demands for agricultural productivity due to the expected population growth and the emphasis on environmental remedial actions, the following question presents itself: what impact will a clean energy supply have on the agricultural economy and the environment, notwithstanding that agriculture, as a sector, also has a huge potential to contribute to renewable energy production? This study examines the effect of the nexus of South Africa's renewable energy supply, CO2 emissions and trade openness on agricultural economic growth from 1990 to 2021. The nexus provides crucial insights into policies targeted at promoting renewable energy in the agricultural sector by isolating key areas of priority. An autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bounds test, fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) test, a dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) test and a canonical cointegrating regression (CCR) econometric analysis were used to estimate the nexus. The results showed that growth in the agricultural sector leads to deterioration in the environment, while international trade benefits the sector. The scale of renewable energy supply slowed down the agricultural economy. The study makes a new contribution in providing empirical evidence for the links between renewable energy supply and agricultural GDP, which can drive policy on renewable energy use in the agricultural sector in South Africa. The paper recommends intentional renewable energy production research and development (R&D) finance focusing on renewable energy human development planning and investments in vocational programmes in higher learning institutes, agricultural renewable energy policy and the creation of green incentive schemes for feedstock producers, especially in rural areas in the agricultural sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we deviate from the existing literature by disentangling the independent variables into their positive and negative changes to capture asymmetric and dynamic multiplier effects of renewable energy and globalization on carbon neutrality targets within the framework of the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model. In doing this, the paper uses South African data for the period 1990 to 2018 and the results show that CO2 emissions respond differently to the positive and negative shocks in renewable energy, globalization, and economic growth. The effect of a positive shock in economic growth is inelastic and positively related to CO2 emissions while a negative shock in economic growth has an elastic and negative effect on CO2 emissions. These results hold for both long-run and short-run periods. In the case of globalization, the positive shock increases CO2 emissions while the negative shock decreases CO2 emissions; although the long-run effect of a negative shock is elastic and insignificant while the short-run negative shock exerts an inelastic and significant effect on CO2 emissions. Furthermore, both the upward and downward shocks in renewable energy consumption transmit a negative effect on CO2 emissions in the long-run and short-run periods. Therefore, the paper suggests among others that to effectively decarbonize the South African economy, the use of subsidies, tax credits, tax holidays, and a host of others on green energy activities need to be enhanced as incentives for promoting cleaner energy production and consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to examine the asymmetric impact of financial institutions and information and communication technologies (ICT) trade on renewable energy demand in BRICS economies by using the cross-sectionally augmented nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag model. The asymmetric estimates of the financial institutions index confirm that a positive shock increases renewable energy consumption, and a negative shock reduces renewable energy consumption in BRICS economies. Similarly, the long-run asymmetric estimates attached to ICT trade are positively significant, confirming that a positive shock increases renewable energy consumption and a negative shock hurts renewable energy consumption. As far as country-wise estimates are concerned, the long-run asymmetric estimates of financial institutions are significant in Brazil, Russia, China, and South Africa. Similarly, the asymmetric estimates attached to ICT trade are significant in Russia, China, India, and South Africa. The results are asymmetric in nature, implying that negative and positive shocks have different effects on renewable energy consumption. Therefore, policymakers should consider both negative and positive shocks in financial institutions and ICT trade while devising policies regarding environmental sustainability and renewable energy consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Challenges in utilising fossil fuels for generating energy call for the adoption of renewable energy sources. This study focuses on modelling and nowcasting optimal tilt angle(s) of solar energy harnessing using historical time series data collected from one of South Africa's radiometric stations, USAid Venda station in Limpopo Province. In the study, we compared random forest (RF), K-nearest neighbours (KNN), and long short-term memory (LSTM) in nowcasting of optimum tilt angle. Gradient boosting (GB) is used as the benchmark model to compare the model's predictive accuracy. The performance measures of mean absolute error (MAE), mean square error (MSE), root mean square error (RMSE) and R 2 were used, and the results showed LSTM to have the best performance in nowcasting optimum tilt angle compared to other models, followed by the RF and GB, whereas KNN was the worst-performing model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rising volume of wastewater sludge and sugarcane bagasse is becoming a prominent concern globally. Furthermore, the growing demand for fuel coupled with the depletion of fossil fuel reserves in South Africa demonstrates the need for alternative energy sources. To minimize the reliance on fossil-based energy sources, a renewable resource such as biomass can be optimized as an energy source. Wastewater sludge and bagasse have the energy potential to produce high-calorific-value biocoal; this will contribute to the supply of energy in South Africa. The synthesis of biocoal from wastewater sludge and bagasse through an artificial synthetic coal production process, i.e., hydrothermal carbonization (HTC), is preferred over other thermal conversion techniques as HTC is capable of handling feed having a high (75–90%) moisture content. This article focuses on the production of biocoal from wastewater sludge and sugarcane bagasse as an alternative to sustainable bioenergy supply and as one of the potential solutions for reducing net CO2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from fossil-fuel power plants, and addresses the use of different thermochemical technologies, previous studies on the composition of wastewater sludge and bagasse, and the benefits of hydrothermal carbonization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The renewable energy market is expanding in Africa, along with funding from the West for numerous projects on renewable energy. In this article, I problematise renewable energy finance in Africa, with a specific focus on the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan in South Africa, building on and contributing to literature on financial subordination and geographies of renewables finance. I critically analyse, through a desktop study and documentary analysis of the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan, how racial capitalism continues through postcolonial renewable financing for electricity generation in South Africa, driving private sector participation in the public sector, under a neocolonialist framework. First, I draw on literature focusing on race and postcolonialism in Africa regarding financing of renewable energy. Second, I critically assess South Africa's Just Energy Transition Partnership and Investment Plan from a critical theory perspective. I argue for an understanding of renewable energy financing through the lens of postcolonial financial subordination that not only continues colonial logic but furthers the racialisation of capitalism in South Africa along lines benefitting the West and its interests through the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan, and the capitalist class in South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the end of 2014, South Africa was unexpectedly required to implement load shedding, which is electricity blackouts aimed at relieving strain on the electrical grid. Soon after, it was revealed that the nationally owned power company, Eskom, had been neglecting infrastructure maintenance and that the people should expect load shedding to continue for many more years. The article considers the prevalence of fires as a potential consequence of load shedding. In addition to power surging that increases fire risk, this article investigates changes in household energy consumption as a mechanism by which load shedding would increase house fires. After load shedding started, there is evidence that households substituted away from using electricity to alternative energy sources for cooking and lighting that have increased fire risks. Using a novel data set, this article exploits plausibly exogenous variation in the timing and spacing of load shedding, estimates show that likelihood of residential fires increases when load shedding occurs in an area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the impact of renewable energy consumption on economic growth in South Africa has been examined during the period from 1990 to 2019. The study aims to establish whether or not renewable energy consumption matters in the economic growth process of South Africa. Empirical evidence to date on the renewable energy consumption and economic growth nexus is not only scanty but also inconclusive, calling for a study of this nature. Using the ARDL-bounds testing approach, the study failed to find any significant impact of renewable energy consumption on economic growth in South Africa, irrespective of whether the regression analysis is conducted in the short run or in the long run. The findings of this study, therefore, lend more support to the neutrality hypothesis, where renewable energy consumption has no significant impact on economic growth. Based on these empirical results, we can conclude that energy conservation can be pursued in South Africa without jeopardizing the economic growth efforts of the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Main Karoo Basin, and its Late Carboniferous to Early Jurassic stratified fill, the Karoo Supergroup, is the largest geological entity in South Africa and one of the economically most strategic because of its coal resources and potential shale gas resources. It also has a potential future in renewable energy in the form of geothermal energy. Although the basin has not received sufficient dedicated attention from a thermal perspective, numerous heat flow studies have resulted in the gradual accumulation of a substantial data base of the thermal conductivity of the constituent rocks, geothermal gradients and heat flow data. The main purpose of this paper is to collate this information, as well as new observations and thus generate a reference for future geothermal investigations. Approximately 900 conductivity measurements have resulted in well-established average conductivities for most stratified rock types, which vary by an order of magnitude from less than 0.3 W m-1 K-1 for coal to more than 5.0 W m-1 K-1 for sandstone. The maximum recorded temperature in the deepest parts of the basin (greater than 5 km) is 160°C and the overall average thermal gradient is approximately 29 K/km, which is greater than most other geological environments in southern Africa. The heat flow at 74 localities varies in the range 41 to 83 mW m-2 and the average for the central and southern parts of the basin is 62 ± 11 mW m-2 (34 values); this is approximately equal to the average heat flow for the mid-Proterozoic Namaqua tectonic province that underlies the southern half of the basin. The heat flow decreases to less than 50 mW m-2 in the northern and north-western parts of the basin, which values are typical of the underlying Archaean Kaapvaal Craton. Simple models illustrate the application of the heat flow and thermal conductivity data for calculating crustal temperature in the Karoo Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]