Join the least-cost highway

The release of a draft Integrated Resource Plan (IRP 2018) for public comment, is an extremely positive development. Likewise, the document’s acknowledgement that the least-cost new build option for South Africa to 2030 is a combination of solar, wind and gas represents major progress. This reality has been known by electricity planners for some time, but has, until now, not been openly acknowledged by the Department of Energy (DoE). It is equally good news too see that the policy adjustments made to the least-cost plan have been made transparent from the start – a departure from the recent past, when the devil of these adjustments was truly in the detail. The question now, is whether South Africans believe the costs associated with these policy adjustments are fully justified by benefits. Indeed, this is likely to be the major feature of responses that will be received by the DoE over the 60-comment period.