27 September 2015, Pretoria — South Africa will for the first time host the South African International Renewable Energy Conference from 4 to 7 October in Cape Town.
The conference will be held under the theme: “Re-energizing Africa”. Addressing the media in Pretoria on Saturday after the Cabinet meeting held this week, Minister in the Presidency Jeff Radebe said the conference will profile renewable energy opportunities available in South Africa and Africa to producers of renewable power as their next investment destination.
“South Africa, through its Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme, is becoming one of the biggest markets for renewable energy,” he said. According to Minister Radebe, in future biomass, wind power, solar power and hydropower will contribute 11.4 gigawatts of renewable energy to the grid.
The Department of Science and Technology is supporting the country’s energy policies through research and technology development in low and carbon-free technologies that can be commercialized and rolled out to increase energy security and access to all South Africans.
“We are now capable of manufacturing and integrating various components into a whole range of energy generating devices for these applications that are currently undergoing testing. “The benefit of our hydrogen and fuel cell technologies Programme is the use of platinum which will also open opportunities into the automotive catalytic converter market and promote beneficiation of one of our most abundant minerals. In this regard, we have established and are strengthening our partnership with the private sector to do final tests and commercialize various components and full energy solutions,” he said.
*SAnews.gov.za
