South Africa’s new nuclear build to be anchored on science

Department of Electricity and Energy Minister, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, has assured that public consultation on South Africa’s proposed nuclear expansion will be anchored in science and evidence rather than ideological bias.

Ramokgopa delivered the keynote address at the South African Nuclear and Clean Energy Conference held under the theme: “Transitioning from Policy to Execution: Powering a Secure, Sustainable and Industrialised Future”.

He confirmed that the state-owned power utility, Eskom, has submitted its feasibility programme for a 5200MW nuclear energy programme in line with the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2025, which sets out plans to install new nuclear capacity in South Africa.
“The department is preparing a proposed determination for public participation. We will put the case for additional capacity before the public and consider submissions on their merits. It should not be an in-principle objection, an obsession with one energy technology over the other. It must be on the basis of merits, and merit is anchored on science and evidence.

“Publication of the determination is a statutory trigger for procurement. The National Nuclear Regulator will exercise its independent authority over safety and licensing. The Nuclear Energy Policy designates Eskom as the owner and operator of nuclear plants and provides for Eskom to retain control under a public-private partnership,” Ramokgopa said on Tuesday.

He emphasised that government had learnt from “the sad past” relating to the build programme of the Kusile and Medupi power stations.

“It’s a template on how not to do things. We are going to learn from that and unlearn from those experiences so that this nuclear build programme is not a casualty of poor planning,” the Minister assured.

Ramokgopa emphasised the need to support South Africa’s economic ambitions with a strong power system.
“South Africa needs enough electricity for the economy we intend to build. That means making provision for manufacturer to expand production, for new investment to connect and for households to gain access to a service they can afford.

“An economy with too little capacity pays for that shortage through higher cost supply and through production and investment that never takes place,” he stated.

Skills deficit
The Minister highlighted the practical challenges facing the country’s build program, acknowledging that it has been decades since South Africa last undertook a nuclear construction project.

“I must admit that one of the biggest inherent risks in this program is that we have not built a nuclear power plant in the past 50 years or so.

“[There] are people who have experienced how to build a nuclear power station. So, we don’t have them in abundance. The ones we have at Koeberg, they know how to run an already built power station. So, the inherent risk is we don't have people who have built nuclear power stations before,” Ramokgopa explained.

To overcome these constraints, he said the country must cultivate local engineering talent.
“It will be resolved through our work with the international partners, to build a pipeline of engineers who are going to build a nuclear power station from scratch.

“We are going to accumulate this experience as we build the first reactor, second reactor, third reactor. You will see [in time] that we have built sufficient capacity and capability to be able to stand on our own,” he said.

Turning to Eskom’s coal-fired fleet, the Minister said coal and nuclear “can operate alongside one another”.

“The department, working with Eskom, is reviewing the coal fleet on its own merits. Some stations may have a case for longer operation, and others will retire. Those decisions have to reflect plant conditions, costs and the applicable environmental requirements.

“The case for adding nuclear is that [it is] dependable, low carbon and cost-effective. It is part of the capacity we are developing to support growth and diversify supply,” Ramokgopa said. – SAnews.gov.za

 

Source: Original report at SAnews.gov.za.