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861 results for “energy transition in South Africa”
BLACK SOLDIER FLY AGRICULTURE
The document details a three-year partnership between the Anglo American Foundation and GreenCape to catalyse South Africa's fragmented Black Soldier Fly (BSF) sector. Central to this effort was the establishment of the Southern African Mass Insect Rearing Organisation (SAMIRO), a member-based industry body designed to provide a unified voice for advocacy and regulatory navigation. Despite achieving significant investment and job creation, the sector continues to face challenges from global volatility and waning investor risk appetite, leaving SAMIRO operating as a "minimum viable product."
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Document type: Case study
MANUAL COMPILED IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 51 of the PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ACT (PAIA) (Act 2 OF 2000)
The Southern African Wildlife College Trust, managed by WWF South Africa, has published this PAIA manual to facilitate public access to its records. The Trust's primary objective is to fund education and training in nature conservation management at the Southern African Wildlife College, specifically to subsidise costs for natural resource managers in SADC countries and provide student bursaries. The document outlines the request process, including the use of a prescribed application form, the role of the Information Officer (Mrs Jodie Johnson), and a detailed fee structure for requests and reproductions. It lists available records, such as annual financial statements, and categories of held records including administration, financial management, governance, and legal compliance documents.
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Document type: Guide
No Justice in Lima Outcome
Friends of the Earth International and its signatories critique the Lima Conference for producing weak pre-2020 mitigation pledges and failing to secure binding commitments on finance, adaptation, and loss and damage. The statement asserts that the outcome shifts responsibility to the Global South, protects polluting corporations, and risks expanding carbon markets at the expense of land rights. It calls for a systemic transformation away from fossil fuels toward community-controlled renewable energy and agro-ecological solutions.
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Document type: Statement
Cost of Capital Commission: A Proposal
The policy brief argues that African countries face a crisis of 'debt that is too expensive' rather than too much debt, which hinders human development and the energy transition. It proposes a Cost of Capital Commission composed of high-level experts to recommend reforms to credit rating agency methodologies, Basel III macro-prudential regulations, and the integration of natural capital and remittances into debt sustainability analyses.
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Document type: Policy brief
A Natural Fit
The report examines the land-use intensity of various renewable energy sources and proposes dual-land-use systems—such as agrivoltaics and ecovoltaics—to mitigate land degradation and enhance biodiversity and food security. It emphasizes the need for cross-sectoral policy coordination, inclusive governance, and targeted finance to ensure the energy transition does not compromise land health or local livelihoods.
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Document type: Report
Sustainable Development: The missing piece in the Southern African Customs Union’s regional trading arrangements?
The report examines the Southern African Customs Union (SACU)—comprising South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho, and Swaziland—and its various trade agreements. It finds that most agreements focus almost exclusively on market access and economic growth, largely ignoring social and environmental pillars of sustainable development. The study highlights the critical role of the SACU Revenue Sharing Formula in supporting smaller member states and warns that rapid trade liberalization, particularly with the EU, US, and China, may lead to significant tariff revenue losses and job cuts in sensitive sectors like textiles. It recommends that SACU integrate sustainable development guidelines into negotiations, conduct impact assessments, and increase transparency and parliamentary oversight of trade deals.
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Document type: Report
COMMENT ON THE ELECTRICITY REGULATION AMENDMENT BILL [B23 – 2023]
The submission argues that the Electricity Regulation Amendment Bill [B23 – 2023] lacks sufficient provisions for a just transition, energy decentralisation, and transparency. It specifically criticises the potential for grid privatisation through wheeling agreements, the lack of regulatory support for energy storage and small-scale embedded generation (SSEG), and the expansion of Ministerial discretion over the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) and procurement processes. The authors also object to proposed confidentiality clauses that could limit public access to licence applications and call for stronger public participation requirements aligned with PAJA and PAIA.
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Document type: Statement
DAMNED IF YOU DAM: TANZANIA’S ENERGY DILEMMAS
The paper examines Tanzania's electrification challenges, noting that only 32.8% of the population had electricity access in 2016. It critiques the proposed $3.6 billion Stiegler's Gorge hydroelectric dam, arguing that its benefits are outweighed by risks to the Selous World Heritage Site and downstream livelihoods in the Lower Rufiji. The author suggests that Tanzania should leapfrog traditional centralized infrastructure in favor of a combination of large-scale and micro-scale solar and wind power to achieve inclusive development without causing significant biodiversity loss.
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Document type: Research paper
TOWARD SUSTAINABLE MINING
The mining industry is a major global energy consumer, with 2014 consumption reaching almost 1,400 TWh, representing between 1.25% and 11% of total world energy use. Much of this energy is provided by carbon-intensive diesel generation, particularly at remote off-grid sites. However, falling costs for solar PV and wind energy—with global LCOE dropping by 85% and 66% respectively since 2009—now make renewables cost-competitive with diesel and grid power. The document suggests that most mining functions, excluding trucking, can be electrified, and that U.S. mines could convert an additional 30% of their energy load to electricity. Beyond carbon reduction, transitioning to renewables can provide mining companies with a 'social license to operate' by creating local jobs, improving community relations through microgrids or community solar, and helping national governments meet Paris Agreement NDCs. The 'Sunshine for Mines' program aims to catalyze the installation of 8 GW of renewable capacity in the mining sector by 2025.
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Document type: Briefing
ABSA GROUP LIMITED’S ROLE IN FINANCING PROPOSED NEW COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS
The Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), writing on behalf of the Life After Coal Campaign, calls on ABSA Group Limited to cease financing the Thabametsi and Khanyisa coal-fired power stations. The CER argues that these projects are not 'procured' due to missing or challenged legal authorisations, including atmospheric emission and water use licences. The document asserts that the 2018 draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) incorrectly includes these projects despite a 'least cost' option consisting only of solar, wind, and gas. The CER highlights that the plants would be located in polluted air quality priority areas, causing severe health impacts and producing greenhouse gas emissions nearly 60% higher than the Medupi and Kusile stations. Financially, the CER claims the inclusion of new coal in the draft IRP would cost South Africa nearly R20 billion more than necessary, increasing costs for consumers.
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Document type: Statement
Financing country platforms
The document describes country platforms as a mechanism for governments to coordinate national and international finance, moving away from fragmented, project-based approaches toward structured, country-led plans. It highlights the role of Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs) and emphasizes that success depends on institutional capacity, strategic coordination among various actors, and flexible implementation tailored to the specific country context.
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Document type: Briefing
Achieving a Fossil-Free Recovery
The report analyzes government energy-related spending during the COVID-19 pandemic, finding that a significant portion of recovery funds still supports fossil fuel-intensive sectors. It proposes five core principles for a 'fossil-free recovery': ending public funding for fossil fuel production, reforming fossil fuel subsidies and taxes to raise revenue, 'swapping' those funds into clean energy (access, efficiency, transport, and power), incentivizing private investment in clean electricity, and ensuring a just transition for affected workers and communities.
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Document type: Report
GREEN ECONOMY COALITION: EVENT REPORT
The Green Economy Coalition (GEC) convened a global meeting in Cape Town from January 8-10, 2019, bringing together over 130 participants to address the question of how everyone can get a stake in the green economy. The event resulted in five core findings, a set of policy recommendations for the UN-PAGE Ministerial, and a framework for the GEC's next ten-year strategy. The report highlights a global trend toward green investment—noting over 9 trillion of private investment since 2007—while warning that biodiversity is in crisis and the global financial system is structurally unfit for the environmental crisis. It also provides status updates on green economy initiatives in several GEC hub countries, including South Africa, India, Mongolia, Peru, Senegal, and Uganda.
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Document type: Report
Strategy 2024-2028
Natural Justice's 2024-2028 strategy focuses on the legal empowerment of African communities to defend their rights against harmful extractive projects and climate impacts. The organisation employs a 'Litigation Plus' approach, combining strategic legal action with community-led research and policy influencing. Key priorities include securing land tenure, protecting traditional knowledge via the Nagoya Protocol, and promoting a just energy transition. The strategy is implemented through three main programmes: Standing with Communities, Defending Rights against Environmental and Social Impacts, and Affirming and Securing Rights to Lands, Resources and Knowledge.
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Document type: Report
The Global Minimum Tax and Special Economic Zones
The document argues that the Global Minimum Tax (GMT) reduces the effectiveness of traditional corporate tax incentives in SEZs, such as tax holidays and reduced rates, for large multinational enterprises. It suggests that countries should shift from profit-based tax competition toward improving the overall investment environment and utilizing non-fiscal incentives. The brief also warns of legal risks associated with reforming these incentives, specifically regarding investor-state dispute settlements (ISDS) and stabilization clauses, while recommending that SEZs be leveraged to support the energy transition and renewable energy investment.
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Document type: Policy brief
Moving Towards Performance-Based Specifications in Public Procurement
The document examines the transition from prescriptive to performance-based specifications in public procurement, specifically through Product Service Systems (PSS). It argues that by specifying required outcomes rather than technical inputs, governments can stimulate private sector innovation, reduce natural resource consumption, and lower costs. While highlighting the potential for circularity and the success of Energy Service Companies (ESCOs), the text cautions that environmental benefits depend on the specific product category and the operational characteristics of the business model used.
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Document type: Briefing
eskom-response-to-lacs-updated-comments-30-08-2020-ens-esk_bk-v2-8bac82a74bc02772.pdf
This document is a formal exchange between the Life After Coal (LAC) campaign—a joint effort by the Centre for Environmental Rights, groundWork, and Earthlife Africa—and Eskom. The LAC objects to Eskom's applications for alternative emission limits and exemptions from the Minimum Emission Standards (MES) for the Medupi and Matimba power stations. Eskom defends its use of legal mechanisms for postponement and exemptions, citing financial constraints, the need for energy security, and the principles of sustainable development.
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Document type: Report
Digital Transformation Trade, Climate, and Net Zero Pathways: Scenarios and Implications for Developing Countries and Climate-Resilient Development
The document examines the 'twin transition' of digital and green transformations, highlighting how digital technologies can both enable climate action and contribute significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions. It identifies critical gaps in infrastructure and financing for developing countries and proposes five priority decarbonization levers: green infrastructure, energy-efficient operations, sustainable supply chains, circular economy models, and climate-compatible infrastructure. The authors argue for coordinated international cooperation, targeted financial incentives, and the integration of environmental provisions into digital trade agreements to ensure an inclusive transition to net zero.
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Document type: Briefing
OPORTUNIDADES Y PROPUESTAS PARA LA INCORPORACIÓN DE CO-BENEFICIOS en subastas de energía renovable no convencional en Colombia
The document argues that Colombia's previous energy auctions, which focused exclusively on price, failed to account for social risks, leading to significant project delays and cancellations, particularly in La Guajira. It proposes a three-phase transition from a price-only model to a multi-criteria evaluation system. This transition includes introducing basic documentary requirements, then structured community relationship and capacity-building plans, and finally requiring verifiable territorial evidence and community co-ownership as eligibility criteria. The report emphasizes that these co-benefits should complement, not replace, existing legal obligations like prior consultation and environmental licensing.
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Document type: Report
Exploring the Critical Minerals Ecosystem in SADC Country Barriers and Enablers
The report examines the SADC region's role in the global energy transition, focusing on critical minerals like copper, lithium, cobalt, graphite, manganese, nickel, and rare earth elements. It highlights the risk of SADC countries remaining raw material suppliers unless they implement robust governance and strategic value-addition policies. The analysis covers the geostrategic influence of China, the US, and the EU, while providing country-specific case studies and recommendations for regional value chain development.
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Document type: Report