Renewable sources can meet half of South Africa's energy needs

South Africa CAN generate 50% of its total energy supplies from renewable energy by 2050, according to a study commissioned by nongovernmental organisation Earthlife Africa.

These sources include biomass, wind, solar energy and water.

"But for us to reach the 50% mark, a lot of planning will be needed," Richard Worthington, co-ordinator of Earthlife's Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Project, said yesterday.

"What this study says is that it can be achieved."

Government has looked to cleaner and affordable renewable energy alternative sources to fossil fuels, which currently account for about 90% of SA's energy.

In the minerals and energy department's white paper on renewable energy, published in 2003, government set itself a target of 10000 GWh renewable energy contribution to final energy consumption by 2013. The document said this would translate to 4% of the projected electricity demand for 2013.

About 9% of the country's total energy supply currently comes from renewable energy sources - and most of this comes from fuel wood and animal waste.

The environment department approved plans for SA's first commercial wind farm in the Darling district of Western Cape in February this year.

"Reducing our country's dependence on conventional energy is inevitable over the long-term, but will be at far greater cost and with little prospect of a just distribution of costs and benefits, if we do not start to plan now," Worthington said.

The study, conducted by energy researchers Douglas Banks and Jason Schaeffler, will be released in Midrand tomorrow. According to Earthlife, senior officials from the Central Energy Fund and the departments of environmental affairs and tourism and minerals and energy are expected to attend the event.

Worthington said government should set ambitious targets on renewable energy for the sake of job creation and poverty reduction.

Although they were cheaper to maintain, renewable energy technologies had higher start-up costs, compared with conventional energy, government said in its white paper. Government said it would consider the central energy and equalisation funds as sources of funds for renewable energy technologies.

"It is hoped that this study will prompt a more responsible, forward-looking and optimistic approach to energy planning.

"For too long, vested interests have kept renewable energy restricted to niche applications, persuading our decision-makers that the exploitation of stock energy ... is the only possible route to development," Earthlife said.