Coal Electricity Generation In South Africa

The key role played by our coal reserves in the economy is illustrated by the fact that eskom is the 7th.

Coal electricity generation in south africa.

Internationally coal is the most widely used primary fuel accounting for about 36 percent of the total fuel consumption of the world s electricity production. South africa s power generation is currently dominated by coal which accounts for more than 80 of output and makes the country one of the top 20 emitters of carbon dioxide worldwide. This in turn rotates the magnetic rotor inside the coil to generate electricity. The remainder of south africa s coal production feeds the various local industries with 53 used for electricity generation.

Coal fired power generation is a major source of air pollution in south africa this pollution has a serious impact on health equivalent to 2 200 attributable deaths per year and associated ill health total costs associated with these impacts exceed 2 billion annually these impacts should be considered in future energy policy 22. 25 of our production is exported internationally making south africa the third largest coal exporting country. The government is focussing on diversifying the power mix by introducing natural gas and renewables including concentrating solar power csp. Coal also plays a significant role in supply to the south african chemicals industry and is an essential component of its steelmaking industry.

Pty ltd be at up to assess the external cost of coal fired power generation in south africa focusing specifically on the case of kusile. New projects will not fully compensate for the decline of the existing fleet. South africa is reliant on coal but is making efforts to diversify as its coal fired fleet is ageing. Coal is the major primary energy source for south africa.

Coal fired power stations contribute to widespread indirect costs which are referred to as externalities and these are not included in the traded price of coal or of products relying on coal. South africa has excellent natural resources for csp development. Putting a price on these externalities was the objective of. The steam is directed onto the blades of a turbine to make it rotate.

Nuclear power in south africa was constructed in the 1980s and has served south africa well for the last 30 years. More than 90 of the country s electricity and approximately 30 of the liquid fuel are produced from coal doe 2016. Only a decade ago nuclear power used to be the cheapest non co2 emitting generation technology. South africa produces an average of 224 million tones of marketable coal annually making it the fifth largest coal producing country in the world.