South Africa: Country 'Has Enough Wind for 35 Percent of Electricity
Supply'
Bekezela Phakathi
16 August 2010
Johannesburg � A University of Cape Town doctoral study has found that
SA has more than enough wind to provide a consistent feed of
electricity into the national grid.
The government's renewable energy policy has set a target for a 4%
contribution, or about 10 000GWh, of electricity to be produced from
renewable sources by 2013.
The study, conducted by Kilian Hagermann for his doctoral thesis ,
concluded there was enough wind to provide an unexpected 35% of SA's
electricity. Mr Hagermann's calculations, done in 2008, were based on
electricity demand in 2007. The study also found that almost half of
SA had enough wind to be considered a "good" supply and that sizeable
inland regions were an "excellent" resource.
Mr Hagermann said wind energy was not only cleaner than coal energy
but cheaper, hence the need to invest in wind. "Eskom's latest coal-
fired power station, Kusile, will produce power costing about R30m per
megawatt of installed capacity. Wind developers in SA are working at a
far lower cost: R20m-R25m per m egawatt of installed capacity."
The South African Wind Energy Association estimates that 20% of the
country's total electricity could be produced by wind in 15 years' time.
In a submission on the government's new integrated resource plan, the
association said: "The technology exists, is proven, and has decades
of operating experience. It can be deployed quickly and at scale by
the private sector."
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