South African Renewable Energy Masterplan

The South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (SAREM) outlines a framework to localise the wind, solar PV, and battery energy storage value chains. It argues that localising 70% of components and 90% of Balance of Plant (BoP) and Operations and Maintenance (O&M) could create 36,500 direct jobs and contribute R420 billion to GDP by 2030. The plan emphasizes the need for market certainty through consistent public procurement and the transition to a points-based local content scoring system to incentivize high-value manufacturing over simple CAPEX spend. It specifically targets 'Just Transition hotspots' like Mpumalanga to pivot coal-sector workers into the green economy.

• Localising 70% of components and 90% of Balance of Plant (BoP) and Operations and Maintenance (O&M) in wind and solar PV, alongside battery energy storage, is projected to create 36,500 new direct jobs and contribute R420 billion to GDP by 2030.
• The Integrated Resource Plan (IRP2019) provides the primary market demand, envisaging the addition of 14,400MW of wind, 6,400MW of solar PV, 4,000MW of embedded generation, and 2,000MW of storage by 2030.
• Analysis of comparator economies shows that successful renewable energy industrialisation requires long-term market visibility, established local content requirements, government investment in R&D and training, and strong export support, with successful nations exporting 60-80% of production.
• The plan proposes shifting from a CAPEX-based scoring system to a points-based system for local content in procurement to better incentivise the manufacturing of key components and cost efficiency.
• To support a Just Transition, the plan aims to locate 10% of renewable energy manufacturing in 'Just Transition hotspots' (areas seeing coal sector reduction) by 2030 and train approximately 10,000 youth and former coal workers.
• The battery energy storage value chain is identified as a distinct workstream with a three-phase development path: starting with mineral beneficiation and BESS integration, moving to a regional beneficiation hub, and culminating in cell manufacturing and EV production.
• Market certainty is critical for investment; the stalling of the REIPPPP Bid Window 4 led to approximately R1.69 billion in closures and cancelled investments and the loss of over 1,000 jobs.
• Economic modelling indicates that localising certain components is beneficial even if they incur a price premium, as the gross value-add to the economy results in a net positive impact.

APA

Rassool, N. (2022). South African Renewable Energy Masterplan. GreenCape. https://greencape.co.za/assets/SAREM-Draft-March-2022.pdf

Chicago

Rassool, Naim. South African Renewable Energy Masterplan. GreenCape, 2022. https://greencape.co.za/assets/SAREM-Draft-March-2022.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Rassool |first1=Naim |title=South African Renewable Energy Masterplan |publisher=GreenCape |date=March 2022 |url=https://greencape.co.za/assets/SAREM-Draft-March-2022.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rassool2022south, author = {Rassool, Naim}, title = {{South African Renewable Energy Masterplan}}, institution = {GreenCape}, year = {2022}, month = mar, url = {https://greencape.co.za/assets/SAREM-Draft-March-2022.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }