Grid capacity stumbling block in resolving energy crisis: Mantashe
Minister Energy Gwede Mantashe says the lack of grid capacity is proving to be a huge stumbling block in efforts to resolve the energy crisis.
Mantashe spoke during the tabling of his department’s budget vote in Parliament on Tuesday.
“The single most challenge we face to address is the grid unavailability because you can increase the generation but without the grid capacity the impact is not the same,” said Mantashe.
The country is currently alternating between stages 4 and 6 of load shedding due to high electricity demand and cold weather.
Mantashe said connectivity and universal access to electricity for citizens are still government priorities, despite the load shedding crisis.
“We have been given advice and one of those was that we should not be connecting more people because there is a shortage of electricity. Our view is that connectivity and universal access to electricity are necessary, it can’t wait for the grid. We must deal with the grid problem but connect our people.”
Mantashe, who also heads the mineral resources portfolio, told MPs the mining sector is one of the country’s best-performing sectors.
“The department's budget for the 2023/24 financial year is R10.7 billion. You can notice that it’s one of the smallest budgets in our budget, confirming that we are not investing enough in revenue-generating departments.
“The mining industry contributes meaningfully to the Gross Domestic Product. The sector created 23 552 jobs between December 2021 and December 2022, resulting in the overall employment of 472 088 workers. According to SARS, the mining sector contributed R89 billion in corporate tax in the 2021/22 financial year,” Mantashe added.
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