Power Solutions And Jobs Need To Be Top Of SA Government’s Agenda

President Zuma in his State of the Nation address on 12 February 2016 elaborated on how progress has been made to stabilize the electricity supply in the last year, which included the investment of R194 billion in the Department of Energy’s (DoE) Renewable Independent Power Producer Programme (REIPP Programme).

The DoE has shown its support to developing this sector through its REIPP Programme, which has been very successful in electricity generation and preventing further load shedding in South Africa. However, the programme has not hit the achievable target of sustainable rural employment where most of the solar and wind projects are located.

Growing the renewable energy sector in South Africa is a sensible solution to not only alleviating the energy problem, but also creating employment. South Africa receives a constant source of sunlight, which provides high solar radiation levels. Let’s use this unending resource to not only harness power, but assist with unemployment in rural areas of South Africa.

The REIPP Programme has provided South Africa with renewable electricity that is now at least half the cost of the coal power coming from Medupi and Kusile. I believe that it is now time to have the horse pulling the cart, not pushing it.

The job of low cost solar electricity has been a remarkable success by the REIPP Programme. However, sustainable success will only come from sustainable jobs.

These jobs can be centered in the disadvantaged local rural areas, where the developments are taking place. In order to achieve this we will have to focus on the creation of these jobs rather than the dumbing down further of the energy price, where we have ‘hit and run’ foreign installers that can install at the cheapest price with no vision or understanding of the requirements of these rural communities.

Low economic growth at a national level in South Africa does not negate job creation opportunities in certain focused sectors, such as renewable energy. Even without the support of economic growth, job creation should become a national treaty where every key stakeholder from our President down must publicly make a job commitment - where it is possible to measure the winners and losers at Budget time every year.

The world thought South Africa was an unlikely place for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. However, the national spirit was focused and we delivered the greatest sporting and economic achievement of our generation. We now need our leaders to make the creation of jobs for our youth the top national priority and deliver this achievement, like the World Cup, with national pride.

Another success of the REIPP Programme has been the social and economic achievements as mandated by the DoE. Our company has been at the forefront of these achievements with its programmes in the Northern Cape. An example is the 2015 Entrepreneurial Programme where, after an extensive nine-month course and competition, eight viable enterprises led by rural entrepreneurs were selected and are now being supported with business skills and financial aid to grow and develop these businesses further. The types of the successful enterprises range from local waste recycling to ostrich farming.

About Solar Capital

Solar Capital (Pty) Ltd is a subsidiary of Phelan Holdings (Pty) Ltd a prominent South African based International Investment and Development Company, with the vision to become a market leader in the production of solar energy in Southern Africa. Based in Cape Town, Solar Capital has built up a local and international proficiency in renewable energy, in order to realize its mission. With Southern Africa having some of the highest annual solar radiation levels in the world, Solar Capital has invested in real estate and technology with the potential to develop the continent’s most valuable energy source – the sun.

47 Main Road,
Green Point,
Cape Town,
South Africa,
8005
Paschal Phelan
Tel: +27 (0) 21 433 0366
www.solarcapital.co.za
www.phelanenergygroup.com

This release was published on openPR.