As the Minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources, Kitso Mokaila told delegates at a coal and energy sector conference yesterday, the highly anticipated tender was published in the Government Gazette last week. According to government's plans, half of the 600 megawatts will be sourced through extension of Morupule B power station by adding two more units with a capacity of 150MW each. At present, the power station has four 150MW units at various stages of completion and operation.
The other 300MW that government is seeking can be developed anywhere else in the country. In the midst of the current power shortages, both regionally and locally, liberalisation of the power sector to allow private sector players in will go a long way to address the supply/demand gap which seems to be ever widening as economies grow. For years, we have had to rely on cheaper but unsustainable power supply from South Africa while our coal resources, which estimated to be a staggering 212 billion tonnes, lay idle.
