Large-scale Rollout of Concentrating Solar Power in South Africa

The document outlines a three-phase deployment of CSP in South Africa, targeting 100 GW of capacity by 2050 to save 3,850 Mt CO2-eq. It identifies critical barriers in technology, regulation, and infrastructure, specifically highlighting the need for grid expansion in the north-west and the operationalization of the Renewable Energy Feed-In Tariff (REFIT). The authors argue that international financial support is essential to overcome high investment costs and risk, proposing specific funding mechanisms for R&D and infrastructure.

• The proposed large-scale CSP rollout is divided into three phases: a 'Start' phase (2010-2015) targeting 2 GW, a 'Scale-up' phase (2016-2020) targeting 7 GW, and a 'Rollout' phase (2021-2050) aiming for 100 GW of capacity.
• The large-scale rollout of CSP could result in 3,850 Mt CO2-eq of greenhouse gas emissions being saved between 2010 and 2050.
• Incremental investment costs for the rollout are estimated at R3.9-10.3 billion per year if technology learning rates of 15-20% are experienced, but could drop to R3.6-3.9 billion per year if a local supply of CSP components is established.
• The levelised cost of electricity (LEC) from CSP is projected to become competitive with nuclear power by 2026 and with conventional coal by 2045.
• Water availability is identified as a critical long-term barrier; the lower Orange River's available water for development (150 million m3 annually) would limit CSP capacity in that region to just over 50 GW.
• Significant grid expansion is required to link high-irradiation areas in the north-west to consumer centres, with potential costs for the 'Rollout' phase (2021-2050) estimated at R700-800 billion for approximately 60 new transmission lines.
• The Renewable Energy Feed-In Tariff (REFIT) provides a power purchase agreement of R2.10 per kWh for CSP developments using parabolic trough technology with six hours of storage.
• International financial support is deemed the most vital requirement, with proposed risk-sharing for the first 100 MW plant (50%) and four subsequent 100 MW plants (25%), totaling an estimated R10 billion.
• Stakeholders identified 'electricity produced' from CSP plants as the most successful indicator for monitoring the rollout, followed by licenses issued, plants under construction, and committed finance.

APA

Edkins, M., Winkler, H., & Marquard, A. (2009). Large-scale Rollout of Concentrating Solar Power in South Africa. Climate Strategies. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/isda-za-csp-september-2009-report.pdf

Chicago

Edkins, Max, Harald Winkler, and Andrew Marquard. Large-scale Rollout of Concentrating Solar Power in South Africa. Climate Strategies, 2009. https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/isda-za-csp-september-2009-report.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Edkins |first1=Max |last2=Winkler |first2=Harald |last3=Marquard |first3=Andrew |title=Large-scale Rollout of Concentrating Solar Power in South Africa |publisher=Climate Strategies |date=September 2009 |url=https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/isda-za-csp-september-2009-report.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{edkins2009largescale, author = {Edkins, Max and Winkler, Harald and Marquard, Andrew}, title = {{Large-scale Rollout of Concentrating Solar Power in South Africa}}, institution = {Climate Strategies}, year = {2009}, month = sep, url = {https://climatestrategies.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/isda-za-csp-september-2009-report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }