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This research report assesses the impact of including two coal-fired independent power producer (IPP) projects—Thabametsi and Khanyisa—in South Africa's electricity system from 2022 to 2052. Using the South African Times Model (SATIM), the study finds that these plants are not necessary to meet demand and would increase both total system costs and greenhouse gas emissions across all analysed scenarios, potentially offsetting national energy efficiency and carbon tax mitigation efforts.

This report describes two new methodological updates to the Open-Source Spatial Electrification Tool (OnSSET) designed to account for grid unreliability. While standard OnSSET modelling assumes 100% reliability for grid extensions, these updates introduce the Cost of Non-Served Energy (CNSE) and diesel back-up system proxies to more accurately reflect the costs of power outages. A case study in eastern Uganda demonstrates that incorporating these reliability metrics shifts the 'least-cost' electrification pathway away from grid extension and toward decentralized off-grid solutions.

This guide explains how the Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) integrates with the open-source NEMO framework to perform energy system optimization. It details the capabilities for both partial and full energy system optimization, the costs and constraints considered in least-cost calculations, and the options for foresight modeling.