Limpopo Business 2016-17 edition

OVERVIEW
South Africa has received R53.2-
billion in foreign investment.
The overwhelming majority
of projects approved have been
solar and wind and there is now
going to be a focus on finding
ways to promote projects using
biogas, landfill gas and small-scale
hydro electric.
Limpopo’s three REIPPP projects
are all of the photovoltaic
solar type, and together they will
generate 118MW at full capacity.
The provincial government’s
Green Economy Plan has identified
solar and biomass as the main
kinds of renewable energy that
the province can pursue.
Nine biogas digesters have
been installed in the Vhembe
District and these will be controlled
by young entrepreneurs
trained by the University of
Venda. A demonstration model
is at the university. A group of
31 students are studying Energy
Management Systems as part of
Limpopo’s Green Economy Plan.
Energy generation is not the
only component of the plan: with
huge silicon reserves in the province,
there is potential for the production
of solar panels and solar
chargers for cellphones.
Alternatives
The mining and agricultural sectors
are the two biggest and most
important sectors of the Limpopo
provincial economy. They are big
consumers of energy and hold
the key to advancing alternate
technologies.
Many mines are looking increasingly
at going off-grid and
are therefore using renewable strategies to achieve that. The agricultural
sector obviously controls all sorts of feedstocks that can be used
to generate power.
Anglo Platinum has launched an underground mining locomotive
powered by a fuel cell. Platinum coating greatly enhances the hydrogen
absorption capacity of fuel cells. The locomotive was developed
together with Vehicle Projects, Trident South Africa and Battery Electric.
Anglo Coal’s operations at Lephalale produce a huge amount of
methane gas. A third of this gas is now being used to power fuel cells.
Anglo Platinum is a 17.5% shareholder in Johnson Matthew Fuel
Cells. Anglo Platinum bought the second-hand demonstration unit
from UTC Power, a US company. It can produce up to 200 kilowatts
of electricity.
Bioethanol, biodiesel and methane gas from waste and renewable
resources are among the types of biofuels being investigated.
A new set of national government guidelines has shifted the emphasis
towards finding fuel stock from crops that are unlikely to affect
food security, like sugar cane, sugar beet, canola and sunflower seeds.
Limpopo is well placed to exploit these crops and has several other
advantages as a potential green economy:
• Thousands of hectares of open space that could be traded in the
carbon-trading market
• High solar intensity
• Relevant mineral deposits such as silica, which are useful in making
solar products
• A well-established and well-equipped agricultural sector, capable
of producing crops for use as biofuel
NGO Project 90x2030 has a demonstration site in Limpopo, showing
off the latest technology in renewable energy. At Tshulu-HaMakuya,
the 20-unit computer room of the Tshulu Trust is powered by a solar
photovoltaic system, as is the lighting for the facility. More and more
game lodges are moving off the grid through the use of solar panels.
Mining group Exxaro is sponsoring the roll-out of alternative energy
near its remote Tshikondeni mine east of Musina. The Alternative
Energy Development Corporation (AEDC) has installed zinc air fuel cells
in homes and in street lights. With this technology, oxygen and zinc
combine in fuel cells to generate renewable energy.
ONLINE RESOURCES
African Biofuels: www.africanbiofuels.co.za
CDM Africa Climate Solutions: www.cdmafrica.com
Mapfura Makhura Incubator: www.biodieselmmi.co.za
National Department of Energy: www.energy.gov.za
Southern African Biofuels Association: www.saba.za.org
Sustainable Energy Africa: www.sustainable.org.za
61 LIMPOPO BUSINESS 2016/17