The National Transmission Company of South Africa (NTCSA) is set to receive more than R90 billion of its R131bn target in concessional funding from the Just Energy Transition (JET) to construct up to 8 000 kilometres of transmission lines.
Heads of the Just Energy Transition Project Management Unit in the South African Presidency, Joanne Yawitch, briefed the Portfolio Committee on Electricity and Energy about the JET.
She said the NTCSA, unable to borrow on the market due to its parent company Eskom's debt moratorium, would receive an allocation of between $3 billion (R54bn) and $5bn to facilitate the integration of renewable energy from Independent Power Producers (IPPs).
The unit must build 14 000 km of grid lines by 2030 to meet the target of adding at least 5 Gigawatts of renewable power to the grid.
“That will require an investment of R131bn. Currently, we are far below that level with Eskom’s existing capacity. What we are proposing is to redirect unused concessional loans towards transmission investments, enabling the construction of between 5 000 and 8 000 km of grid lines. These funds would be channelled through NTCSA, as it faces borrowing constraints due to its status as an Eskom subsidiary, which cannot independently secure financing,” Yawitch said.
The NTCSA is preparing to upscale investments in transmission grids and associated infrastructure. It is collaborating with the Department of Energy and the Treasury to evaluate the system for integrating IPPs into the grid. The Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET-IP) funding would ideally support these efforts.
Yawitch said the Climate Investment Funds, aimed at retiring and replacing coal power stations, include a $50 million grant earmarked for the decommissioning of Mpumalanga’s coal plants. This funding is intended to support the development of energy efficiency projects, distributed generation and community-based energy initiatives.
To reduce carbon emissions by 320 to 420 metric tons of CO₂ equivalent, South Africa requires R1.5 trillion over the next four years, up to 2027. Currently, the country has secured $836bn in pledges, primarily from the International Partners Group, which includes France, Germany, the UK, the US and the EU. This group has since been joined by Denmark, the Netherlands, Canada, Switzerland, and Spain, all of whom are supporting the JET-IP through bilateral agreements.
Yawitch said $450bn is available in highly concessional loans with favourable borrowing terms. Additionally, $7bn in concessional loans has been allocated to Eskom, but the entity is unable to access these funds due to a debt moratorium imposed by a government guarantee programme.
The JET-IP fund includes over $9bn in commercial debt and equity, intended for technical transactions involving firms from the UK, US, Spain and Denmark.
Members of Parliament Nazier Paulsen, Edwin Baptie, Lencel Komane, and others were sharply critical of the Komati Power Plant's decommissioning, which they argued was carried out hastily and without regard for the dire circumstances now facing former workers.
He said in Komati, events unfolded in ways they were not supposed to.
“It is a failure due to its social consequences and the shortcomings in the so-called greening process, including the solar panels intended to replace power from Komatipoort. On the social side, Eskom acknowledged that of the more than 300 employees, only 50% were retained. Consider also the contractors and the local vendors who sold food to workers—the economy built around the power station is gone. The negative consequences have affected the community in and around the area. Two years later, we are only now discussing social investment and infrastructure upgrades. These are lessons that must be learned," Paulsen said.
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