Divorce from coal calls for a new romance with nuclear in the spotlight

AFTER a long, sometimes loving, sometimes contemptuous marriage, our Minister of Electricity and Energy, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, has filed for divorce from coal. Well, sort of. The new Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) has set several ambitious goals for 2039 as the country transitions away from its longstanding dependence on fossil fuels, towards renewables, gas and nuclear.

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The IRP has been met with both praise and critique, with some analysts citing cost-effectiveness concerns, whilst others laud its alignment with climate imperatives.

For years, solar and wind have been the seductive temptress of the energy transition dating scene, while nuclear lingered as a recluse in the corner of a dim-lit bar.

Now she gets to step into the spotlight, and all eyes are on her.

The IRP has assigned 5 200 megawatts of new nuclear generating capacity by 2039, allowing for a further expansion to 10 000 megawatts, depending on future nuclear industrialisation outcomes.

We spent more than R10 billion on the development of the Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR), which is being revived after a 15-year hiatus, and we can now aggressively pursue exciting Small Modular Reactor (SMR) possibilities.

And, they are exciting. SMRs offer scalable, factory-built nuclear solutions that can be deployed faster and at lower upfront cost than traditional large reactors. Globally, projects such as NuScale Power’s VOYGR design in the United States, Rolls-Royce’s SMR programme in the United Kingdom, and Russia's Akademik Lomonosov floating plant have demonstrated real-world progress in modular nuclear deployment.