MPs want sun, wind, water for the people

Impatient with the slow pace at which solar, wind and other renewable energy production is being developed, a group of MPs on Tuesday unveiled a private member's bill they hope will speed up the process.

The Renewable Energy Feed-In Tariff Bill aims, among others, to encourage investment in such alternative power sources to help reduce dependence on coal-fired plants, which each year belch millions of tons of greenhouse gasses into South Africa's atmosphere.

The parliamentary lobby group, eREACT, "enjoys broad support from political parties", according to its convenor, Inkatha Freedom Party MP Ruth Rabinowitz.

Briefing the media at Parliament, she said the bill, if adopted, would compel utility Eskom to ensure solar, wind and hydro power producers are paid "a fixed tariff to feed energy into the grid for a fixed period of time".

It was, she noted, a case of "giving real power to the people".

Speaking at the briefing, the Democratic Alliance's Gareth Morgan said the business community was currently reluctant to invest in renewable energy because it could not get a guaranteed price per kWh for electricity produced.

The advantages of encouraging investment in renewable energy production included adding to the country's energy security, reducing reliance on Eskom, and the creation of jobs.

"We have lost patience with the dragging of feet by the executive (on renewable energy development)," he said.

Rabinowitz said South Africa lacked an "integrated vision or strategy to fast-track development of a renewable energy industry".

The draft bill proposes that payment for electricity generated by renewable energy producers be paid for at a rate up to five times the agreed regulatory tariff for a fixed period of between 15 and 25 years.

Speaking at the briefing, Howard Ramsden, CEO of Terra Power Solutions, said the cost of establishing a solar power station was about R17 million a megawatt. A typical 46MW solar modular system would therefore cost about R780-million.

With such high capital investment, the plant would need to sell its electricity at a minimum 80 cents a kWh to break even. A similar figure applied to wind turbines.

Although the current cost to consumers of Eskom power was 36 cents a kWh, the cost of electricity from renewable sources such as sun and wind compared more than favourably with Eskom's peak-usage gas turbine plants, which put out power at R2,80 a kWh.

Morgan said if the parliamentary schedule allowed, the bill - sponsored by Rabinowitz - would be tabled before Parliament closes ahead of next year's election.

Rabinowitz said Finance Minister Trevor Manuel had stated "that he is not convinced of the economic case for large-scale renewable energy projects in South Africa".

The focus remained on nuclear and coal-fired power stations.

"Yet there is convincing evidence that we have the world's best site for generating... solar thermal power... right here in the Northern Cape," she said.

Also speaking at the briefing, Independent Democrats MP Lance Greyling said up to 70 percent of the components needed for a solar power station could be produced in South Africa.

Such a project would mean "huge job creation", he said. - Sapa