Recent developments seem to indicate that the powerships of the Turkish company Karpowership could get the green light from the South African government. There are, however, several more hoops that it will have to jump through.
During the past week, permission was granted for two of the powerships’ environmental impact studies to be submitted late. So, these can still either be approved or rejected.
Access to the national power grid and the procurement agreement with Eskom must also still be finalised.
And the procurement agreement is one of the biggest problems. The FF Plus condemned the planned twenty-year contract with a set tariff structure, which is fixed in advance, from the outset.
Powerships do have merit as an emergency measure. Twenty years is, however, not an “emergency period”. And connecting them to the power grid will not be quick or an easy feat.
Environmental issues and space in the relevant ports of Richards Bay, Ngqura (Port Elizabeth) and Saldanha Bay also remain problematic. Possible concerns must be addressed in the environmental impact studies, which may now be submitted late.
Power supply remains a critical weakness in the South African economy, likewise, the doubt about whether powerships are the solution also remains.