RESPONSE TO MINISTER’S STATEMENT IN RELATION TO THE PROPOSED THABAMETSI & KHANYISA IPP COAL-FIRED POWER STATIONS

The Life After Coal Campaign and Greenpeace Africa urge the South African Minister of Energy to halt the Thabametsi and Khanyisa coal-fired IPP projects. They argue these plants are legally precarious due to pending court challenges over climate and environmental authorisations, and are economically unnecessary given the availability of cheaper renewable energy. The authors highlight severe risks to water security and air quality in the Highveld Priority Area and Waterberg-Bojanala, while warning that the plants could become stranded assets due to greenhouse gas constraints.

• The Thabametsi and Khanyisa coal-fired IPP projects are currently unable to reach commercial and financial close because they are subject to ongoing legal challenges and lack necessary licences, including water use and atmospheric emission licences.
• The Thabametsi plant's climate change impact assessment was found by a peer review to have understated its "very high" climate impacts, and the project is expected to be one of the highest greenhouse gas emitters globally.
• The proposed plants pose significant risks to water and air quality: Khanyisa is located in the heavily-polluted Highveld Priority Area, and Thabametsi is in the water-scarce Waterberg-Bojanala area.
• New coal-fired power is deemed unnecessary and economically inefficient for South Africa, with the coal IPP price of R1.03 per kilowatt hour being significantly more expensive than recent renewable energy IPPs.
• There is a risk that the plants will become stranded assets before the end of their 30-40 year anticipated lifespans due to water scarcity and greenhouse gas emission constraints.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2018). RESPONSE TO MINISTER’S STATEMENT IN RELATION TO THE PROPOSED THABAMETSI & KHANYISA IPP COAL-FIRED POWER STATIONS. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/LAC-and-GP-letter-to-Minister-Radebe-on-IPPs-22-3-18_signed.docx.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. RESPONSE TO MINISTER’S STATEMENT IN RELATION TO THE PROPOSED THABAMETSI & KHANYISA IPP COAL-FIRED POWER STATIONS. 2018. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/LAC-and-GP-letter-to-Minister-Radebe-on-IPPs-22-3-18_signed.docx.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=RESPONSE TO MINISTER’S STATEMENT IN RELATION TO THE PROPOSED THABAMETSI & KHANYISA IPP COAL-FIRED POWER STATIONS |date=22 March 2018 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/LAC-and-GP-letter-to-Minister-Radebe-on-IPPs-22-3-18_signed.docx.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrights2018response, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{RESPONSE TO MINISTER’S STATEMENT IN RELATION TO THE PROPOSED THABAMETSI \& KHANYISA IPP COAL-FIRED POWER STATIONS}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2018}, month = mar, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/LAC-and-GP-letter-to-Minister-Radebe-on-IPPs-22-3-18_signed.docx.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }