The CEO of the South African Wind Energy Association Niveshen Govender says the wind sector is contributing just under 3.4 Gigawatts of energy into the grid.
The Energy Association also added that part of the problem is that it takes a long time to establish wind energy projects. Construction can take anything from 12 to 18 months while environmental assessments and other processes are also in the mix.
Govender says the sector wanted to contribute more in the ten years of wind generation projects. South Africa is considered one of the best countries for generating wind and solar power.
‘’We would have liked to do a little more, unfortunately we had hiccups along the way. You can see during evening peaks, we are contributing over a thousand megawatts every night and reducing the amount of load shedding that we’re having, so wind energy has contributed quite significantly to the economy and will continue to grow its reach in terms of generation capacity,’’ adds Govender.
The country currently generates most of its electricity from coal which is considered a major contributor to greenhouse gasses.
The Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe says the energy transition towards zero carbon emissions should use all natural resources. He says these include the sun, wind, nuclear, coal and water.
Mantashe was speaking at the Wind Energy Indaba in Cape Town where he says the country must find ways of a combined use of these natural resources for sustainable energy supply.
Windaba | Minister Gwede Mantashe addresses wind energy conference in Cape Town:
