This week, the City of Cape Town is taking a major step towards protecting its residents from Eskom’s load-shedding. On April 6th, 2023, the City will issue a tender for its biggest power purchase yet – a 500 MW tender for competitive proposals. Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis is confident that this will be the first metro to break free from Eskom’s hold and enable meaningful economic growth and investment.
The 500 MW tender will include power generation purchases from plants focusing on dispatchable technologies such as battery storage and gas-to-power. The sources need to provide power for a significant portion of the day to support the City’s load-shedding protection efforts, and they need not be located in a City-supply area. Successful bidders will enter into 10-year Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with the City.
The City’s ‘Building Hope’ Budget, which contains R2.3bn to end load-shedding plan over three years, includes R220m to buy power on the open market, R288m for the Power Heroes voluntary energy savings incentive scheme, R1bn to operate Steenbras Hydro Pumped Storage Scheme, R53m in ‘cash for power’ payments for solar power from residents and business, R640m on City-owned solar plants, and R50m in battery storage technology.
Cape Town is the first metro area in South Africa to embark on this innovative and technologically-forward initiative. Although gas-to-power is mentioned as being part of the new 500 MW tender, Cape Town’s programs to augment its electricity supplies are mostly centered around renewable energy. This is an inspiring example of how metros can take progressive steps to alleviate load-shedding and create a more sustainable future.
FAQ
Q1. How electric car batteries work?
A1. Electric car batteries are typically lithium-ion batteries that store energy and power the motor. They are recharged by plugging the car into an electric outlet or charging station.
Q2. What electric car has the longest range?
A2. The Tesla Model S has the longest range of any electric car currently on the market, with a range of up to 370 miles on a single charge.
Q3. How electric car batteries are recycled?
A3. Electric car batteries are recycled by breaking them down into their component parts and then separating out the metals, plastics, and other materials for reuse. The metals are melted down and reused in new products, while the plastics and other materials are recycled into new products.
