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I
n his State of the Nation Address, President
Zuma put Energy squarely onto the agenda.
This does not mean it has not been there
before – but it does mean that the issues are
getting the attention of the highest authority
in the land.
Let’s be honest – energy has become a ‘crisis’
in the country… and I do not use that word
lightly.
It is evident that there is a need to use
alternative forms of energy. While this makes
sense, there are substantial associated
challenges. These include the ability of the
network to absorb their contribution as and
when it is available, and the need to be able to
provide the energy as and when it is needed.
It is evident that these times will not necessarily
coincide.
A key observation is the recognition that the
crisis in which we find ourselves implies that it
can no longer be business as usual. We need
to restructure the sector, we need to find ways
of doing things quicker – and, frankly, we need
to become a whole lot smarter in how we do
things.
I think that one of the frustrations that must be
removed from the system is the tendency to
never quite spot the urgency of the problem.
I am fully committed to transparent and
fair processes, but equally, we need quick
processes that allow us to solve problems
efficiently. I am hopeful that this will become
the case.
Let us never forget where we came from. Not
long ago, the vast majority of South Africans
were under-serviced in terms of access to
electrical energy. To a large extent, this has
changed and the impact has, without doubt,
been profound.
I have commented before that some of our
woes have been due to the fact that we are
rebuilding and growing our economy. It has
been in the energy sector, particularly, where
we took some very big bites - and now, I
suspect, have indigestion .
One undisputed fact is that constraints within
the electricity supply sector have impacted on
economic growth.
While we can certainly argue that aspects of
this unfortunate state of affairs could have been
avoided, the more important consideration is
to ensure that we never have a repeat. Still…
progress towards resolving issues seems to
be slower than one would like.
My concern is that as we build generation
capacity using a variety of technologies,
we need to be certain that the network – at
transmission and distribution levels – is
actually able to manage and deliver that energy
effectively and reliably.
I have no doubt that many engineers work
tirelessly to ensure that this is the case. My
concern is that, at a variety of levels, our
approach to system design has, of late, let
us down.
My further concern is that financial constraints
have forced us to follow a less than optimal
path – and one that, in the longer term, costs
far more.
But, I can assure you – it will all be good in
the end!
Ian Jandrell
Pr Eng,
BSc (Eng) GDE PhD,
FSAIEE SMIEEE
COMMENT
1
July ‘14
Electricity+Control
