14 May (NucNet): South Africa will continue preparing for the roll-out of a nuclear energy programme, including reaching a final investment decision on procurement for the plants, the energy ministry has said.
The ministry quoted energy minister Dipuo Peters as saying nuclear energy offers “tremendous benefits” for South Africa because it would “leapfrog” the country into a knowledge economy and lead to “massive industrial development”.
In a budget speech delivered in parliament, Ms Peters said the government’s nuclear power programme would be “a cost-effective way of lowering South Africa’s carbon emissions as part of a broader energy mix”.
According to the ministry she also said South Africa had set a global example by allowing a team from the International Atomic Energy Agency assess its nuclear infrastructure in February 2013.
“So far, we are the first country with an operational nuclear power plant and reactors to voluntarily conduct such a readiness assessment,” she said.
The IAEA said the South African government is “committed to expanding its nuclear power programme” and had asked the IAEA to carry out the review, known as an Integrated Nuclear Infrastructure Review (INIR), to check its infrastructure and identify areas for improvement.
Ms Peters has not committed to a timeline for possible new nuclear. According to the government’s Integrated Resource Plan, produced in 2010, South Africa should build 9.6 gigawatts of new nuclear capacity between 2023 and 2030.
In April 2013 public enterprises minister Malusi Gigaba said South Africa will make a decision this year on the country’s future investment in a fleet of nuclear power plants.
Mr Gigaba said South Africa “has little time” to reach a decision on how to meet its future energy requirements.
He said the national nuclear energy executive co-ordinating committee had been “working around the clock” debating issues relating to a possible nuclear build programme.
In September 2011 Ms Peters said she had “signed-off” a proposal for the roll-out of new nuclear power plants. The proposal details the decisions that are required and the governance framework of these decisions, the energy department said.
The energy department said the government recognises the “complexity and magnitude” of the new nuclear build programme and is putting in place the appropriate governance structures to “instil confidence in and protect the credibility of the process”.
South Africa has two commercially operational nuclear units at the Koeberg nuclear power plant. According to the IAEA, the units account for about five percent of the country’s generated electricity.
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