South African Business 2020 edition

OVERVIEW
The economic power
of renewable energy
Dr Tobias Bischof-Niemz, CEO of ENERTRAG South
Africa, aims to bring local value-add into the business
of solar and wind power.
Dr Tobias Bischof-Niemz, CEO
Why has ENERTRAG entered the South African market?
We believe in the power of economics. The economics for solar and wind
technologies in South Africa are so superior compared to the conventional
ways of producing energy, that we have absolutely no doubt that there
is a bright future ahead for the South African renewables market. Our
company always has a long-term vision based on strong fundamentals.
BIOGRAPHY
Before joining ENERTRAG
in September 2017, Tobias
successfully established and
led the Energy Centre at the
Council for Scientific and
Industrial Research (CSIR).
Tobias served as a member
of the inaugural South African
Ministerial Advisory Council
on Energy (MACE). He
was recently appointed as
Professor in Practice by the
University of Johannesburg. He
is author of the book “South
Africa’s Energy Transition” that
outlines a roadmap for a lowcost,
decarbonised and jobrich
future for South Africa’s
energy sector.
What are your priorities?
One is a focus on the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer
Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) – large-scale, utility, wind and solar
photovoltaic power. The other focus is “new segments”, hybrid projects
which combine solar and wind, where we optimise all the customers’
options with a mix of technologies. We are looking at hydrogen production
from wind and solar as well.
Are there opportunities in hydrogen fuel cells for electric
vehicles?
Absolutely. The economics for the individual truck or bus owner are such
that hydrogen fuel cells, purely on the fuel side, are already very close to
parity with diesel.
What are your key differentiators?
Our socio-economic approach is key. Wherever we go we want to
be as local as possible. We maximise local value-add in developing,
implementing and operating our projects. For us and for our 15 employees,
ENERTRAG South Africa is a proudly South African company.
On the technical side what’s different is that we are not a “produce
and forget” wind turbine operator, we are a power plant operator and
we take full system responsibility. Our power plants are based on solar
and wind as the primary energy source; those are components. The
actual power plant combines them and spans across an entire region.
Does the regulatory environment encourage investment?
Over the last five years there were no investments. We need an updated
Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). The draft IRP 2018 is a positive move in the
right direction, but it is not promulgated yet. In the smaller megawatts
category, we need the regulations to embrace that. All studies show that
the future of South African electricity lies in solar and wind.
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SOUTH AFRICAN BUSINESS 2020