South African Concentrated Solar Power: Weighing Up the Opportunity

At first glance South Africa’s decision to invite bids for 200 MW of CSP is not doing the industry many favours. On closer inspection, however, there could be a sizeable opportunity.

This month 800-plus green power professionals gathered at South Africa’s largest conference centre, the Gallagher Estate, to hear about the country’s forthcoming renewable energy tender. Those representing the CSP sector may have been forgiven for wondering whether the trip was worth it. Out of more than 3.7 GW of renewable power generation open to bids, just 200 MW has been allocated to solar thermal energy generation (STEG), compared to 1.85 GW for onshore wind and 1.45 GW to photovoltaics (PV).

However there is more than meets the eye, with Eskom developing their 100MW CSP plant it indicates they see a future for CSP which may well be enough to kick-start the development of a South African supply chain. And that could give the government the jobs and economic stimulus it needs in order to feel more comfortable about giving the industry more support.

With this in mind the concentrated solar power industry business intelligence & news provider CSP Today have produced a 3 part guide to the CSP market in South Africa to highlight the opportunities and challenges facing this emerging CSP market.

‘This is the only guide focused on providing you with comprehensive knowledge on how to navigate the IPP market to build a successful & productive CSP business in South Africa.’ Heidi Hafes, Research & Event Director, CSP Today

Part 1 of the guide is available to download from the CSP Today, and tackles the issue weighing up the South African CSP opportunity, with an in depth analysis on:

The reasons behind the South African government opting for the competitive bidding process over the Renewable Energy Feed in Tariff model

The amount of CSP bidders currently in the market and which developers are showing an interest in South Africa so you can evaluate the importance of the market

The size of the market and how the policy shift has affected potential investors and developers so you can decide if your business should be involved in this new market

To download Part 1 of the CSP Today South Africa guide visit: https://www.csptoday.com/zaguide

Tags: business intelligence, competitive bidding process, concentrated solar power, economic stimulus, energy generation, eskom, gallagher estate, industry business, power generation, power professionals, renewable energy, solar thermal power, south africa csp, south africa solar, south african government

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