World Bank Group President David Malpass visited the decommissioned Komati coal-fired power plant at the weekend.
The visit follows the World Bank Group’s Board approval last week of the Government of South Africa’s request for $497 million to decommission and repurpose the Komati coal-fired power plant using renewables and batteries, while creating new opportunities for the affected workers and communities.
The visit was Malpass’s first trip to South Africa as World Bank Group President, ahead of COP27 in Egypt. At COP27 he will highlight the bank’s activities to integrate climate and development, the need for impactful investments in key systems transitions, and the importance of concessional and grant financing for developing countries as they reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
South Africa is implementing the Integrated Resource Plan 2019, which aims to retire 12 GW of aging coal-fired power plants by 2030 while installing 18 GW of renewables. The power sector is a major contributor to GHG emissions in the country, accounting for 41% of its CO2 emissions.
“I am encouraged to see South Africa taking steps to produce more electricity while finishing the closure of the 60-year-old Komati coal plant. Moving toward an efficient lower-carbon growth model will require large investments in new capacity and grid upgrades to absorb renewables. These are important steps to repair the ailing energy sector and provide reliable access to electricity for businesses and people,” Malpass said.
“The Komati project recognises the social challenges of the transition, especially for coal-reliant regions like Mpumalanga. Helping affected workers and communities is an important component of the project.”
The Just Energy Transition Project at the Komati coal-fired power plant is a demonstration project that can serve as a model for future projects, locally and globally. It has three focal areas: mitigating climate change through reducing carbon emissions; improving energy security through repurposing the project area with renewables and batteries, and creating socio-economic opportunities for workers and communities. The project will provide learning experiences through a cycle of piloting, monitoring, assessing, documenting, and information sharing on decommissioning and repurposing coal plants.
Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana said the country needed the support of global partners.
“We welcome President Malpass’s visit to South Africa to support Eskom’s project to decommission and repurpose the Komati coal-fired plant. The programme is in line with our broader Just Transition Framework recently endorsed by our cabinet. We cannot walk this road alone. The fact is that poor and middle-income countries like South Africa will be disproportionately affected by climate change. The success of our ambitions will depend greatly on financial support from our global partners.”
