South Africa's Eskom seeks transition funding

State-owned South African utility Eskom is seeking financial backing for its decarbonisation efforts, including the construction of at least 4GW in gas-fired generation capacity

South Africa faces frequent power outages and load shedding, as the country’s overburdened network strains to cope with high demand, poor infrastructure and widespread theft and damage. Carbon intensity is also high, due to South Africa’s overwhelming reliance on ageing coal-fired power plants, with the IEA rating the country as “one of the most energy intensive economies”. But South Africa has also committed to decarbonise through its National Development Plan, which calls for a “Just Energy Transition (JET)” that “does not impede socio-economic development”. Eskom is therefore now seeking foreign and institutional investors—on behalf of the government in Pretoria—in order to overhaul its g