Independent power producers in South Africa
by Doug Kuni, South African Independent Power Producers Association (SAIPPA)
 Eskom's new build is running late. The 1st Medupi unit was planned for Jun 2011 but has moved to Dec 2013. Kusile is also 2 years late. According to IRP2010, orders for Coal 3 and nuclear should have been placed already. But it would be prudent for all IPP development to be suspended until ministerial approval is obtained - a process which could take another 6 - 12 months... ( more)
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Eskom, BHP Billiton and the secret commodity-linked electricity pricing deals - the relevance today
A presentation to SANEA by Chris Yelland, investigative editor, EE Publishers
 I would like to suggest to President Zuma, if I may be so bold, that he should respectfully ask BHP Billiton to do its shareholders, Eskom and South Africa a big favour and close its loss making, electricity guzzling Mozal and Hillside aluminium smelters... ( more) |
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iPad apps for EE Publishers' magazines
EE Publishers announces new, state-of-the-art, iPad apps for its magazines, EngineerIT, Energize, Vector and PositionIT, that deliver a fast, high-resolution and feature-rich reader experience in full colour. The apps may be downloaded free-of-charge from the Apple iTunes App Store to your iPad tablet computer... ( more) |
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Energize InBox: letters to the editor
Submit your letters to the editor to energize@ee.co.za and be in line to win a prize. Energize reserves the right to edit letters. Our winning letter this month is from Robin Hayes, SSI... ( more) |
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The Jacob Marley column: Occupy the rooftops!
When I asked Scrooge what he thought about the latest article on rooftop PV, he glared at me with flaring eyes. "You mean that story about the awaking giant?" he snapped. "I don't like giants, by Jove!" He looked furtively around, as if he were expecting a reprisal of some kind, but the flames roared on without without so much as a flicker... ( more) |
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World Energy Council survey reveals issues likely to impact Africa's energy Information from WEC
African energy leaders see energy prices, energy poverty, and instability in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region to be the most important critical uncertainties in Africa's energy sector, according to the newly released African survey of the World Energy Issues Monitor, published by the World Energy Council... ( more) |
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South Africa's energy efficiency bills
Information from Frost & Sullivan
There is a global trend toward the implementation of sustainable development initiatives, and SA is no exception. However, because SA is a developing country, it is not completely on par with countries such as the UK, US and Australia concerning the implementation of green materials in construction... ( more) |
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Coherent policies and hybrid energy solutions could improve our ratings
by Dr. Ruth Rabinowitz, MamaEarth
It is no surprise that the World Economic Forum and the European Commission placed SA 128th in their 2012 Environmental Performance Index. We also fail the test of equality in the Jinni coefficient and of progress on the Millenium Development Goals... (more)
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Barriers to renewable energy alternatives in SA
by Mark Van Heerden, Perpetual Power
Population growth, especially in emerging markets like Africa, as well as a lack of infrastructure planning and development on the part of government has resulted in an ever-increasing energy demand in SA that will not be met over the next few years... ( more) |
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Cylindrical rotor inter-turn short-circuit detection
by Kobus Stols, Eskom
A "strayflux probe" is commonly used in the industry to determine if any inter-turn short-circuits are present in the field winding of a synchronous generator with a cylindrical rotor... (more)
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Protection scheme maloperations due to AC on the substation DC supply
by Stuart van Zyl, Eskom
This paper describes two incidents in which spurious alternating current (AC) signals superimposed on a substation's main direct current (DC) supply caused protection schemes to maloperate, tripping circuit-breakers... ( more)
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The role of smart metering in revenue protection
by James Calmeyer, Strike Technologies
The electricity regulations for compulsory norms and standards for reticulation services of the Electricity Regulations Act No.4 of 2006 specifies that all end-users or customers with a monthly usage of 500 kWh or more need to be on a smart metering system and be on a time-of-use tariff by 1 January 2012... ( more) |
Power metering - crucial for successful energy management
Information from Electrical Engineering Solutions
Intelligent metering is increasingly being accepted as a vital tool for successful energy management and therefore for the effective administration and control of tenant billing. Metering is invaluable in helping a property owner or landlord to achieve his goals for energy measurement, tracking and ultimately overall management... ( more) |
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SANS 941: Energy efficiency of electrical and electronic apparatus
Information from SABS
The National Energy Efficiency Strategy of March 2005 (reviewed in October 2008), proposes that by 2015, a final energy demand reduction of 12% should have been realised by South Africa. The publication of SANS 941, Energy efficiency of electrical and electronic apparatus is a necessary step... ( more) |
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Rechargeable batteries - Part 2: Ni based batteries
by Dr. Paul Lefley, Ayodele Soge, University of Leicester and Jonathan Starkey, Converteam
Nickel-based batteries belong to the family of alkaline rechargeable batteries due to their use of an aqueous alkaline solution (potassium hydroxide, KOH, or sodium hydroxide, NaOH) as the electrolyte. Electrode materials are less reactive with alkaline electrolytes than with acid electrolytes... (more)
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Vibration technology
Information from Comtest
Vibration in industrial equipment can be both a sign and a source of trouble. Other times, vibration just "goes with the territory" as a normal part of machine operation, and should not cause undue concern... (more)
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The role of public participation in the success of renewables in South Africa
by Joanne Reeves, Merz and McLellan
While SA will have its own challenges when it comes to public participation, the renewables industry here can learn from the experiences of the maturing UK wind energy industry... (more)
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Scanning for wind energy
by Ricarda Schuller, Juwi Renewable Energies
With the first renewable energy bidding process now complete, the South African government is stepping into a greener future. Before they launch-into the bid process however, renewable energy companies would have to have gone quite far in the development process of their wind parks... (more)
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Resolving PQ issues - Beyond smart grid functionality for wind farms
by Annette Navon, Elspec
Global weather and economical changes have seen an increase in the demand for alternative energy resources, which consequently has lead to the optimization in the supply of electric power. Wind energy, is considered the second largest renewable resource after solar... (more)
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South African wind capacity credit studies - Part 1
Information from Digsilent
The cost of wind generation has considerably decreased over the last decade and while fossil fuel prices are increasing it is anticipated that wind generation at high wind sites will represent the most economical method for generating electrical energy in the near future... (more)
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