Adnan Adams Mohammed
New Eskom Board Chairman has called for ‘just access’ to transition mechanisms to ensure all inclusive results are achieved.
He believes that to achieve energy transition agenda, just-transition mechanisms must be balanced with the idea of “just access”.
Speaking only days after the new Eskom Board was appointed at the Green Energy Africa Summit, he shared his views on the just transition, securing South Africa’s energy needs, and getting Eskom fired up again. He indicated that, the Green Energy Africa Summit, and similar energy events like Africa Oil Week, are important in terms of connecting the energy-producing economies of the continent with other participants in the global supply chain. Engaging at these events helps us find a common understanding of how to balance the notion of just access with the idea of a just transition. That’s the biggest challenge our continent faces.
“We need to figure out how to take everybody along so that the poorest of the poor feel like they are a part of this green future in a meaningful way – in terms of jobs, and access to economic opportunities”, Mpho Makwana said in an interview on the side-lines of the Green Energy Africa Summit (GEAS) in Cape Town.
“It’s important to understand that we only have one planet that is inhabitable for human beings. We are duty bound to figure out how to change our actions to ensure it continues to be habitable for generations to come.”
He shared insightful ideas and conversation around energy transition agenda. Below are excerpts of his interview.
“Another key insight from this event has been the need to do everything in moderation. We need to ensure we maintain balance, in the spirit of sustainable ESG practices. By way of example, many years ago, Israel looked into wave-power technology. It was a novel idea, but then it became clear that there were other environmental impacts.
Every new idea must be tested against its ESG impacts. Is it sustainable? Will it create new jobs? Will it keep the cost of producing electricity affordable? What it costs to turn a tonne of coal into electricity is already extremely high. As far as possible, we need to work to get Eskom back to the days when it was renowned for producing the cheapest electricity in the world.
There’s something we’ve missed. Because if you inflate the costs of a megawatt of electricity, you are exacerbating the problem of access to electricity. So, we must do everything in moderation as we pursue ESG principles and sustainability.
Events like these also improve Pan-African integration. Integration is improving in Africa, but it is not yet on the same level as Europe, where one can commute across the continent. That level of integration does something remarkable to culture. Your supply chains also begin to cross-pollinate. Events also have economic knock-on effects. The hospitality industry benefits, retail benefits, and it helps to build a sense of pan-African integration.
Finding the ideal energy mix has been a major theme at the Green Energy Africa Summit. What is the ideal energy mix for Eskom? South Africa is suffering major energy shortages and regular load-shedding. How do you see Eskom meeting our growing energy needs going forward?
Firstly, there’s a government programme and policy that Eskom has to implement. But as we implement that policy, we need to be practical in our pursuit of a healthy energy mix. We need to learn from the mistakes that other economies may have made. Spain, Germany, and a few other economies have learned some painful and perhaps valuable lessons. Spain tried decades ago to go totally solar. It almost bankrupted the country. Perhaps at the time, solar prices were still high. But it indicates that no single source of energy can give you absolute sustainability. Germany attempted to move to full wind power, and also learned some painful lessons. The difference between South Africa and Germany is that Germany’s neighbours have enough capacity to support their energy needs, and an integrated grid. South Africa is the only major producer in our region, and we do not have that luxury. We need to be responsible and careful in managing any transition to ensure that it’s sustainable.
Secondly, we need to remember the importance of “coal-based towns” and the economic value chains that they support. If we think of the town of Ogies in Mpumalanga, if we were to – overnight – remove that town’s role as a coal town, what would the people of that town be expected to do? This applies to 10 similar towns in the region that currently are central to the provision of electricity in South Africa.
The map of South Africa’s energy supply chain dates to the early centuries of industrialisation. Today, South Africa has various hubs of economic activity. We no longer have gold mines only in Gauteng. North West province has become a new mining hub. As a country, we need to figure out how to balance our grid in line with these new industrial developments.
This would have to evolve with time. We must consider that our country has made certain commitments to the rest of the world in terms of the Paris Agreement. But we also have significant coal reserves with low sulphur content.
You have just been appointed as Chairman of the new board at Eskom, South Africa’s state energy utility. It is a pivotal role, to say the least. What are your immediate priorities
The immediate priority is to keep the lights on. We have to grapple with how to return the energy availability factor – the EAF – to healthy levels. Under normal conditions, the EAF is 86%. Currently, our EAF is much lower. The president has challenged the Eskom board to get back to 75%. That is a tall order given the state of the systems in the country.
The other priority is people. You have 40 000 people working at Eskom, who understand to varying degrees where all nuts and bolts fit together. We need to reignite a sense of self-worth in these people. People have been psychologically battered throughout this loadshedding challenge.
I recall back when we prepared for the 2010 FIFA World Cup when I was Eskom CEO and chair. I went from region to region, to excite Eskom employees to be great hosts to the world for the World Cup. This time around, the challenge is to reignite in Eskom employees a passion for serving their country and its economy.
Related to this is the idea of reigniting a sense of internal competitiveness between power stations. Power Station X can compete against Power Station Y to see who maintains the highest EAF levels. This would get us well on the way to maintaining healthy energy availability factors across our operations. It’s not spreadsheets or robotics that will turn Eskom around. It’s people. We need to rekindle their passion and energy.
Another priority is that we need to energise communities. The average power station is hosted by a community. We need to excite each community around meaningful energy production and encourage them to see their power station as part of the continuity of the supply environment, and an asset that supports their livelihoods. Nobody will come and cut transmission cables if the community sees it as an asset of its own, which is part of a national asset – our power station fleet.”