The energy action plan

[View in browser]( [Mail & Guardian]( M&G Mornings | Wed 27 Sep   Every Sunday the electricity minister holds a press briefing to discuss where the country is in terms of implementing the Energy Action Plan and information on load-shedding. Kgosientsho Ramokgopa speaks about how this station is improving performance or those stations need maintenance. And he explains why we are moving into higher stages of load-shedding — usually because some units unexpectedly went down. In which case we are told how many megawatts have been lost as a result. Sometimes the briefings are tedious and at other times the language is dense, filled with jargon and hard to follow and experts need to explain what is meant. Every now and then they provide tidbits of very important information. This week, for example, we were told that Eskom must fix the transmission system or risk more power shortages. We were also told that there are concerns about money for the just energy transition from richer countries to move South Africa away from coal. Most of it is in the form of loans. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said in his budget speech in February that the treasury would give Eskom R254 billion towards servicing its debt over a period of three years, on condition that it did not incur new debt. We’d complain if we weren’t updated regularly. And we would miss these nuggets of valuable information. So we’ll continue to give you weekly updates regarding the country’s electricity situation. Because it’s Wednesday, please check out our [environmental newsletter]( the Green Guardian, which goes out today. You’ll find our climate and environment news and a fun weekly quiz. Ozayr Patel | Climate & Environment Editor [@Ozayr8]( ADVERTISEMENT [Ramokgopa: Eskom must focus on transmission and expanding the national grid]( The electricity minister warned that if the country took too long to make decisions on transmission expansion, it would add to its electricity crisis [// Read more]( [Geopolitical conflict a big risk to Agoa extension, says Patel]( Countries’ stance on ongoing geopolitical conflict could be what excludes them from the renewal or extension of the African Growth And Opportunity Act [// Read more]( [National Development Plan targets prove elusive as SA’s economy regresses]( A review of the NDP notes that the economy has not performed adequately to rid the country of poverty, inequality and unemployment by 2030 [// Read more]( ADVERTISEMENT Recommended Reads [Growing fatigue appears to mar the West’s support for Ukraine]( President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s visit to the United States was received a quieter reception that that of the previous year [// Read more]( [TB talks: Will #UNGA78 change these three lives?]( In the past five years, none of the targets political leaders adopted after the previous round of high-level discussions on the fight against tuberculosis at the United Nations General Assembly have been met [// Read more]( [Concern that KwaSizabantu founder Erlo Stegen will be ‘deified’ in death]( The founder and director of the controversial mission station in KwaZulu-Natal — which was the subject of a rights commission investigation — died on Tuesday morning [// Read more]( [South Africa’s consumer food inflation continued to slow in August]( The country will reap the fruits of its favourable agricultural season [// Read more]( [Western Cape is a priority, says Police Minister Bheki Cele]( The police arrested three people and killed four others suspected of cash-in-transit heists [// Read more]( [Share]( [Share]( [Tweet]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Forward]( This email was sent to {EMAIL} [why did I get this?]( [unsubscribe from this list]( [update subscription preferences]( Mail & Guardian Media LTD · 25 Owl St · Braamfontein · Johannesburg, Gauteng 2001 · South Africa