The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) has approved the licensing of 28 independent power producers as preferred bidders for the first phase of the government’s renewable energy programme.

The regulator said last Thursday the licensing process was completed in April, a month earlier than scheduled, following a series of public hearings in Cape Town, the Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Limpopo during the first week of March.

“All 28 applications met the required criteria, which including technical, financial, economic, regulatory and legal requirements,” the regulator said.

The candidates are earmarked to contribute 14 216 MW to South Africa’s total installed capacity, as part of the Department of Energy’s renewable energy bidding programme.

The programme aims to produce 3 725 MW of electricity from wind, solar concentration, photovoltaism, small hydro-gas, biogas, biomass and landfill gas by 2016.

The programme is a sea change for SA, which gets less than 2% of its energy from renewable resources and has only one substantial electricity provider, state utility Eskom. SA relies on coal, a non-renewable resource, for more than 90% of its energy requirements.

Source: Business Day