South Africa: Growth 'Depends On Hydro Power'

The future of SA’s economic growth depended on Southern African Development Community (Sadc) investment in hydro-electricity, particularly in the rivers of Angola, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, Energy Minister Dipuo Peters said yesterday.

Addressing the Sadc Power Sector Investors’ roundtable discussion in Livingstone, Zambia, Peters said it was unfortunate there was a huge untapped potential in hydro power while the region was experiencing limited power supplies that led to blackouts. The lack of progress was due to the absence of a coherent policy environment to produce and trade in electrical energy.
”
She said the Sadc electricity industry’s co-ordination of investment plans left much to be desired. A regular, consistent power supply would do much to attract foreign investment and to entice international companies to establish operations , she said.

She called on the region to accept that private sector investment in electricity generation would come if electricity utilities made profits. SA too had come to accept that the era of cheap electricity was over, even though the government was facing a huge rural development challenge.

AllAfrica