The Western Cape government has welcomed Transnet’s efforts to include the private sector as a renewable energy partner at South Africa’s eight commercial ports of entry, including Saldanha Bay and Cape Town.
Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) has published a Request for Information (RFI) for businesses of the private sector to join hands in submitting project proposals for the introduction of a renewable energy programme to implement across its seaports.
Bizcommunity reported that Transnet’s announcement follows a recent internal audit which indicated that the state-owned company needs to stabilize its energy supply, costs and reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. The company aims to procure 50 to 80MW of renewable energy power generation capacity that can be implemented cumulatively at its eight commercial ports through the Renewable Energy Programme.
Project manager, Jarryd Introna, anticipates that RFI responses will assist the company in gaining better insight into the renewable energy market, particularly for incorporating solar, wind, and other hybrid energy sources “in a manner that is financially prudent, does not harm the environment and has a developmental impact,”
In her speech, Finance and Economic Opportunities MEC, Mireille Wenger, welcomed the RFI publication and deemed it “a welcomed step in the right direction towards more private sector participation in ports, while also strengthening our province’s energy resilience.”
Wenger has called for further collaborations like this which are in line with Operation Vulindlela, a joint initiative of the Presidency and Treasury established in 2020 to accelerate the implementation of structural reforms.
“Historically, insufficient infrastructure investment, specifically at the Port of Cape Town, and poor maintenance has caused significant insufficiencies compromising economic growth and job creation. It’s therefore, good news to see this approach adopted by Transnet, which we hope is the first of many more interventions that will include the private sector as partners,” says Wenger.
RFI responses must be submitted by no later than 6 September 2022 at 12.00 pm.
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