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In light of the inevitable phase-out of coal, Mpumalanga’s future job creator could be agro-processing and storage battery component manufacturing.
Coal has been one of the province’s economic bedrocks for decades and has placed Mpumalanga as one of South Africa’s powerhouses, as it produces 80% of the country’s electricity supply from a concentration of 12 electricity-generating stations in the Nkangala region. Over 100 coal mines supply the Eskom-owned stations.
About 80 000 people in Mpumalanga are benefiting from the province’s coal value chain, and with the gradual phasing out of coal, these jobs are certainly going to be lost.
Fisheries, Forestry and Environment Minister Barbara Creecy told City Press at the COP28 conference in Dubai that the gradual phasing out of coal, in line with meeting the global climate change targets, would require the identification of a sector that could create industrial jobs.
READ: Green lobby group Africa Coal Network calls for 100% green energy for Africa
She said that the creation of the R1.5 trillion Just Energy Transition Investment Plan she launched at COP28 this week involved the participation of Mpumalanga stakeholders.
The document indicates that South Africa’s just energy transition will be a managed, phased, long-term process of economic, social, and environmental change. South Africa is one of the most carbon-intensive developing economies in the world, emitting 0.6kg of carbon dioxide per dollar of gross domestic product. The country is the largest carbon emitter of pollution in Africa, driving 40% of the continent’s total emissions.
The report warns that South Africa faces an economic risk because of the degree of carbon emission embedded in its commodities and products.
READ: Barbara Creecy | Resource constraints hinder decisive action on climate
Creecy said that Mpumalanga would venture into creating agro-processing and storage battery component industries. Green energy needs storage batteries for power. Agriculture in Mpumalanga, according to Stats SA Agricultural Survey, employed just over 801 500 people.
“The question that the plan is confronting is how do you start to understand what future industrial trajectory of a province like Mpumalanga is because the jobs in the value chain are high quality – they have pensions and medical aid,” she said.
The minister said that there were also brilliant ideas around rehabilitating the vast tracts of old mining land for agricultural purposes.
READ: COP28: Creecy launches SA’s R1.5 trillion green energy transition plan
Creecy, however, warned as coal was being gradually phased out, lessons needed to be learnt from the decommissioning of the Komati Power Station near Middelburg. Eskom decommissioned the station because it had reached its lifespan. The closure affected the surrounding community, which got business opportunities from the existence of the plant.
“We have learnt that you cannot start with decommissioning without front-loading socioeconomic initiatives. You must start by doing socioeconomic studies and working with communities to create projects they want,” she said.
Creecy said that the new initiatives could open new opportunities for ordinary community members to co-own and co-run them.
