Concessions that have started unplugging Eskom from its power supply monopoly provide one of the brighter prospects for South African project cargo demand in the short term.According to a World Bank report released in July 2021, investment in the country, which has long been affected by low confidence, contracted for the third year in a row by 17.5% in 2020. The decline was broad-based: private sector investment fell by 19.3% and public investment by 13%. The Building Back Better from Covid-19 report, with a special focus on jobs, adds, “the recent increase of the licensing threshold for embedded electricity generation from 1 MW to 100 MW could have a significant positive effect on confidence and investment. “This could support growth in the short run and help to alleviate the electricity supply constraint in the medium term.”To put 100 MW in perspective, most of South Africa’s wind farms produce less than that. The biggest solar projects are the Karoshoek, Kathu, Xina and Kaxu concentrated solar power plants in the Northern Cape. This technology includes storage capacity that continues to provide power after the sun goes down. At present they are contracted to feed into the Eskom grid.Demand for the new 100-MWplants is expected to come from both the private sector and municipalities. The Western Cape government has budgeted R70 million to help municipalities to cut their ties with Eskom.But, the first to connect could be the eThekwini municipality that includes Durban, which has requested proposals for the provision of 400 MW of power.The City of Johannesburg has announced that it will issue a request for information for the construction of 150 MW of solar power, 50 MW of rooftop solar panels and the refurbishment of an idle gas-fired plant that could generate 20 MW in September. The recent increase of the licensing threshold for embedded electricity generation could have a significant positive effect on confidence and investment. – World Bank report