Eskom outlines ‘aspirational’ generation vision in meeting with lawmakers

Eskom Group CEO Dan Marokane has outlined an “aspirational” new generation capacity profile to 2040, showing that the State-owned entity has an ambition to progressively replace its aged and polluting coal fleet with new and cleaner technologies.

No project details or funding plans have been provided, however, with Eskom confirming only that the capacity profile was “indicative” and included “aspirational and unfunded projects”.

Capital expenditure figures were also not indicated and no individual projects were identified.

Having previously declared that Eskom had a 22 GW project portfolio, Marokane told members of the Portfolio Committee on Electricity and Energy that the generation division, which is yet to be unbundled, was “working on a pipeline of new clean energy to ensure security of supply in the long term”.

A slide included in the presentation shows that Eskom aims to progressively replace its coal fleet with wind, solar PV, battery and pumped-hydro storage, as well