CSIR study blows a hole in Eskom and Department of Energy’s nuclear plans

21 February 2017

The DA will today write to the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Energy, Mr Fikile Majola, to request that Eskom and the Department of Energy (DOE) be summoned to Parliament to respond to the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) study presented at the committee meeting today.

The CSIR presented their least cost energy scenario models to the Committee and revealed that the total cost of power generation for the DOE's draft IRP 2016 base case will be R86 billion per year, which is more expensive than the least cost scenario from the CSIR least cost model by 2050, excluding the cost of CO2.

The CSIR presented their least cost energy scenario models to the Committee and revealed that the total cost of power generation for the DOE's draft IRP 2016 base case will be R86 billion per year, which is more expensive than the least cost scenario from the CSIR least cost model by 2050, excluding the cost of CO2.

The CSIR presented their least cost energy scenario models to the Committee and revealed that the total cost of power generation for the DOE's draft IRP 2016 base case will be R86 billion per year, which is more expensive than the least cost scenario from the CSIR least cost model by 2050, excluding the cost of CO2.

The models take the similar costs and inputs into account. It indicates that by 2050, the least cost model will have a 79% of energy mix from solar and wind while there will be no nuclear. It also predicts a reduced carbon footprint.

The main difference lies in the limitations on renewables that the draft 2016 IRP utilises. It places a fixed unreasonable limitation on renewables that does not increase as the demand for energy increases. This is not used in the CSIR model.

The DOE base case also utilises a projection on the costs of wind and solar that is above the 2010 draft IRP and above actual figures from the latest rounds of the IPP.

These results using the same inputs and timeframes as the department and using the same software package, blows a hole in the department and Eskom’s plans to build nuclear.

The DA calls on the department and Eskom to appear before parliament to respond to this damning study.

With the budget speech tomorrow, and Minister Pravin Gordhan hunting for R28 billion from our pockets to plug a fiscal gap, the political and patronage-linked craving for an expensive nuclear build must be condemned.

The DA will continue to push for the least cost scenario that will protect the public and our future generation from excessive electricity tariff increases.

Issued by Gordon MacKay, DA Shadow Minister of Energy, 21 February 2017