South Africa works on tender for 1.5-GW solar plant - report

South Africa is getting ready to launch an auction this or next year for the construction of a 1,500-MW solar power complex in its Northern Cape province, a senior official said, as cited by Reuters on Monday.

Omphi Aphane, deputy director general in South Africa’s energy ministry, told the news agency that opening the bidding process is a question of a couple of months. The official was attending a Cape Town renewable energy conference under the theme "Re-energising Africa".

A new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) shows that renewable sources could help meet about 22% of Africa’s total final energy needs and 50% of its power consumption by 2030. IRENA estimates that, in the event that the steps mentioned in its report are made, the continent’s solar power capacity could reach 70 GW by that year, including concentrating solar power (CSP) plants.

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