Eskom still trying to go nuclear, as Outa tries to block application

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) wants the National Nuclear Regulator to reject Eskom’s application to build a 2500 MW nuclear station in the Eastern Cape.

In March 2016, Eskom made two applications to the NNR for Nuclear Installation Site Licenses (NISL) for Thyspunt in Eastern Cape and Duynefontyn, next to Koeberg Nuclear Station.

The National Nuclear Regulator (NNR) is holding public consultations on 25 and 26 August as part of a review process for the Thyspunt site licence application. 

In June last year, Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe issued a non-binding Request for Information on building 2 500 MW of new nuclear power. 

Outa, however, is calling on the National Nuclear Regulator (NRR) to refuse the application, saying South Africa can’t afford to spend billions on nuclear energy.

“Outa recommends that the NISL application be rejected until such time that Eskom can demonstrate a need and desirability for the nuclear power plant project, and that sufficient information is provided,” says Liz McDaid, Outa’s Parliamentary Advisor and Energy Advisor.

‘Fruitless and wasteful’

NPO Earthlife is one of the organisations that has vehemently opposed adding nuclear energy to the mix. In 2014 Earthlife and the Southern African Faith Communities Environment Institute successfully fought a dodgy nuclear build programme hatched under a veil of secrecy in the Drakensburg Mountains with preferred Russian bidder, Rosatom.

“Though we will be making oral submissions (at the hearings), we assert that this process is a fruitless and wasteful expenditure. We would like to see the process to be terminated,” said Earthlife Africa Director Makoma Lekalakala.

When asked why the NNR is forging ahead with public consultations, spokesperson Gino Moonsamy said, “The NNR did not receive any further instruction from the applicant to stop, suspend or withdraw the Thyspunt application. Therefore we are proceeding with the process.”

Eskom said that while it doesn’t have a mandate to build a nuclear station, the NSIL ensured that land is available for such a project. “Nuclear power is part of the 2019 IRP, so we will need to have a site to be available when the government is ready to proceed,” said Eskom spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha. 

McDaid also red-flagged other shortcomings with the application. “The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is now 10 years outdated, and they (Eskom and NNR) haven’t provided sufficient information for the public to make any meaningful contribution.”

But Eskom said the EIA is not outdated and still being processed for final comment.

Eskom too deep in debt for nuclear spend

Another grave concern is the parastatal’s abhorrent financial history.

It is currently in R401 billion worth of debt. Eskom owns and operates the majority of the country’s electricity-generating projects, and any new stations would fall under the embattled power utility’s control.

Mantshantsha stressed that the decision to forge ahead with a nuclear build ultimately lies with the Department of Minerals and Energy.

The 2019 IRP laid bare governments determination to keep nuclear energy in the mix after 2024, when the Koeberg station reaches the end of its “40-year” design life.

“It is proposed that policy adjustment must be extended to include nuclear energy, given it’s a clean source of energy with huge socio-economic advantages including investment with long-term returns to South Africa,” said the Department in 2018.

Even with intentions to address poverty and economic development, nuclear power will be a tough sell.

South Africa’s has a well-known history with procurement corruption and improper expenditure through strategic infrastructure projects- evident in energy projects like Medupi and Kusile.

The secret four-day meeting in Drakensburg – with Russia’s state-owned atomic company is also telling. Reports of corruption have dogged Rosatom, which supplies Koeberg with enriched uranium fuel.

A year after the Drakensburg rendezvous, senior Rosatom official Vadim Mikerin was sentenced to four years in jail for paying bribes to American firms working with Rosatom subsidiary, Tenex.