Johannesburg 23 August 2023 (TDI): The Republic of South Africa signed a joint Memorandum of Cooperation with the Republic of China on 23 August.
Dr. Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, the Minister of Electricity in the Presidency of the Republic of South Africa, signed the Memorandum of Cooperation with Chinese Entities on behalf of the South African Government in Johannesburg’s Sandton City.
The signing event took place during the ongoing BRICS Summit in Johannesburg.
These agreements contribute to South Africa’s ongoing endeavor to bolster partnerships for enhancing energy security and facilitating the transition towards sustainable energy.
The purpose of today’s Memorandum of Cooperation was to assist South Africa in addressing its electricity load-shedding issue.
A donation from China will provide around 500 public facilities across the nation with uninterrupted alternative power supply, safeguarding them against the impacts of load shedding.
The contribution encompasses generators, power supply vehicles, and off-grid PV energy storage supply systems.
The South African government has taken steps to exempt around 76 hospitals from load shedding, and efforts are in progress to safeguard at least 46 more from the ongoing power cuts implemented across the nation.
After concluding the Memorandum of Cooperation signing ceremony, Minister for Energy Dr. Kgosientsho Ramokgopa delivered remarks to the attendees.
He clarified that the donation does not entail any financial obligations for South Africa; rather, it represents China’s gesture of aiding a fellow BRICS partner.
Regarding the signed Memorandum of Cooperation, the Minister elaborated that the Chinese entities possess valuable expertise and technology that can be of assistance to Eskom and, consequently, the entire country.
“We are searching for new generation capacity. They are sitting with 688GW of renewable energy and they are going to share with us how to bring that online,” he added.
He further mentioned that China’s current renewable energy capacity significantly surpasses Eskom’s total capacity, making the country an excellent partner for collaborative efforts in the field of energy.
