On Friday 4th November the IPP Procurement Programme in South Africa will see the deadline for the first round of bids.

1 November 2011, London, CSP Today

On Friday 4th November the IPP Procurement Programme in South Africa will see the deadline for the first round of bids. The IPP programme has been designed to contribute towards the target of 3 725 megawatts of renewable energy and towards socio-economic and environmentally sustainable growth. The vision is to start and stimulate the renewable industry in South Africa. There is a lot of pressure for developers to not only provide the most competitive option but meet a stringent list of conditions.

The South African energy market is fast positioning itself as the preferred renewable energy investment destination for both private and public sector investors. The World Bank recently approved a $250-million (R1.5- billion) loan to South African power utility Eskom to develop a wind and solar plant, which will help the country reduce its reliance on coal-based power generation. The US renewable market is facing challenging times with publicity surrounding the bankruptcy of companies supported by the Department of Energy Loan Guarantee program. Also the Spanish market has been struggling in a political battle with the Feed in Tariffs promoting more CSP deployment. Within these unsettling conditions businesses are looking how to expand their business outside of these previously lucrative markets. This is where South Africa can benefit, and make big gains for its economy.

CSP developers such as Abengoa, Solar Reserve and Solar Millennium have already established offices in South Africa, a sign of the commitment of these company's long term interest in the market but also clear indication of its importance. Organisers of the CSP Today South Africa 2012 conference will be hosting a free to attend webinar on November 3rd to discuss growing a local CSP economy in South Africa. Pancho Ndebele, Chairman of SASTELA & CEO of Emvelo will be joined by Luis Crespo, President of ESTELA & Secretary General of Protermosolar. The interactive session will be addressing questions at the heart of this topic including; in building CSP plants in South Africa what percentage will utilise local resources and manufacturing? What is the biggest challenge facing the CSP industry in South Africa? What CSP components could be manufactured in South Africa?

Heidi Hafes, Event Director at CSP Today said ‘In the bidding process there is a substantial weighting placed on creating jobs and using local suppliers in South Africa. With this in mind it is clear more needs to be understood on how to utilise the country's resources and what steps should be taken to create a new CSP industry and supply chain. We are looking forward to kick starting the discussion with the webinar which is free to anyone to attend.'

For more information or to sign up to webinar:

http://www.csptoday.com/southafrica/webinar.shtml

Heidi Hafes
Event Director
CSP Today
heidi@csptoday.com
+44 207 375 7206