Harnessing the wind to power South Africa’s socio-economic development

South Africa / 13 October 2022

South Africa is undergoing an energy crisis, with the country struggling to generate enough electricity to meet demand. This has manifested in successive rounds of loadshedding. A stable grid should be a national imperative for all stakeholders as we strive towards setting the country back on a course for growth, but it is not only about keeping the lights on. Investments in public-private partnerships, or straightforward private investment by enterprises — who can not only reduce their impact on the grid, but even begin to contribute energy back into the grid — is the only workable way forward. The key is to ensure a just energy transition, and to empower the socio-economic growth of the country.

This strategic investment was discussed at the upcoming 11th Annual Windaba Conference and Exhibition hosted by the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA), supported by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). The event, gold sponsored by Siemens Gamesa, took place at the International Convention Centre in Cape Town, South Africa on October 12-13, 2022. The theme for this conference was “Wind Power Spearheading the Energy Transition for Accelerated Growth” and key stakeholders including professionals, policymakers, academics, government representatives and civil society came together to discuss how wind power will drive the move to a more sustainable energy mix across the continent.

South Africa’s high wind speeds — 12 m/s at 100 m height at the best sites, but on average 7.5-8m/s — do offer very favourable conditions for wind installations, particularly along the coastlines.

Siemens Gamesa is a leading member of the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA) and one of our executives is a member of the SAWEA board. Research from the association shows that there are currently 3.024 MW of wind capacity on the South African grid and that 36 wind projects have been selected as part of the country’s REIPPPP, while a R200 billion total investment has been made to all renewable energy initiatives.

Siemens Gamesa continues to make a positive impact in the communities in which our wind farms operate. Since 2014, we have installed and maintain seven projects in South Africa totalling 855 MW. These projects represent 35% operational market share of the local wind industry as of January 2022.

Siemens Gamesa recognises the imperative of economic development for South Africa, and the importance of redressing of the past exclusion of certain individuals in society, which is why they work towards empowering and developing those previously disadvantaged by the system, by growing small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and supporting those marginalised in the society.

During the construction of different wind farms, the company embarked on numerous initiatives to support local schools, encourage science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, and empower start-up enterprises.

Some of the ways in which we contribute to the local communities is through the purchase or rental of homes in the areas, renovating them, drilling boreholes, and installing amenities such as air conditioners into the homes, to ensure a comfortable home-from-home environment for our project teams

We have also assisted a number of historically disadvantaged individuals to start their own women-owned cleaning companies and have contracted them to service our teams’ residences. We also make use of local transport companies for shuttle services, and have assisted them in increasing their vehicle fleet, so they are able to offer additional services and grow into logistics service providers.

Siemens Gamesa has introduced its Top Achiever programmes in a number of high schools and selected outstanding students to sponsor for our ‘Take a Girl Child to Work’ programme. Several schools have also received fully equipped computer labs.

We have also created an apprenticeship program that runs for four years and assists learners by providing necessary bridging courses for maths and science and a further three years of trade certifications which qualifies the participants as artisans. The fields of study in which the students benefited from the bursaries included engineering, supply chain, and human resource management. In addition, Siemens Gamesa has awarded student bursaries at different tertiary institutions across South Africa.

Young people are increasingly disengaged in STEM which is why Siemens Gamesa hosted HackSTEM22. Students were provided with digital tools to develop a more positive attitude towards STEM, and teachers were trained to use the digital tools to ensure no teacher was left behind.

Siemens Gamesa is committed to respecting human rights and the environment.

It is important to us to build positive, inclusive relationships with the communities in which we operate. Our South African supplier base for components, services for installation, and maintenance of the wind farms is steadily growing.

Our business is built on providing safe and sustainable energy solutions. In 2021, we reached a significant milestone for the global wind industry when we launched the offshore RecyclableBlade, the world’s first wind turbine blade that can be recycled at the end of its lifecycle.

In 2022, we continued to propel Siemens Gamesa towards our 2040 Sustainability Vision when we released the RecyclableBlade for onshore projects.

Private and public stakeholders need to work together to help define the right policy frameworks to accelerate South African’s energy transition effectively, and efficiently. If South Africa works together to get the energy transition right, in a just and inclusive manner, we could ensure energy security, restore slow but steady economic growth, and potentially surpass the number of jobs that we currently have in the coal industry if the right measures are in place. This can only happen through serious private and public investment, through building sustainable local value chains and allowing uninterrupted industry to create demand.

Onshore

Sweden an early adopter of leading 5.X technology

In the last of three short interviews to mark the milestone of Onshore reaching the 100GW in our #onshore2netzero campaign we take a look at the Skaftaasen project, which pushed the Onshore business unit past this marker. The project is the first to use Onshore’s leading technology in the Siemens Gamesa 5.X platform, which provides one of the most competitive energy solutions to our customers. Lars Peter Gomes Larsen, Project Manager for the site gave us his insight on this key project.

Sustainability

When it comes to the climate crisis: Actions Speak Louder

Actions speak louder than words. Delivering on the Glasgow Climate Pact agreed at COP26, and supporting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, requires all of us to act, and act now with urgency.   For Siemens Gamesa, protecting the planet for future generations is not just a job but a passion. Tackling climate change requires us to make dramatic changes, and to do this we need to act today, not tomorrow.

Journal

Nearshore projects blossom in Vietnam

Following on our #onshore2netzero campaign we focused on Vietnam, which has spearheaded strong growth in wind energy over recent years and stands to grow in both on, near and offshore for many more to come. The campaign marks Siemens Gamesa’s Onshore business unit reaching the key milestone of 100GW of energy installed, while acknowledging that much more capacity will be required globally in the years ahead for the world to meet its net zero targets.

Harnessing the wind to power South Africa’s socio-economic development

Adnane