Building on the collaborative momentum of Day 0, which united industry and Government around localisation and human-centred renewable energy development. Day 1 of Windaba 2025 opened with a decisive call to action from Minister of Electricity and Energy, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa. Delivering the keynote address, he laid out South Africa’s blueprint for an inclusive, secure, and sustainable energy future - one driven by reform, industrialisation, and partnerships.
The Minister’s address centred on the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2025. The plan, he said, will ensure the security of electricity supply by balancing demand with environmental responsibility and cost of supply, while pursuing a diversified energy mix aligned with global decarbonisation trends.
“Our priorities are clear,” said Minister Ramokgopa. “We must achieve universal access to available, affordable, and quality energy; attain sovereign and regional energy security; drive industrialisation and lead innovation; qualitatively transform our energy demographics; and assert South Africa’s leadership across the continent and globally. These objectives underpin our ambition to move towards a high-growth trajectory powered by sustainable development.”
The Minister acknowledged that the past 15 years of energy insecurity have constrained growth but noted the shift underway. “Coal still dominates, but renewables are growing fast,” he said. “Solar PV and wind additions now make up nearly 80% of new capacity across sub-Saharan Africa, and South Africa continues to lead the region.”
Reforms will be key in producing South Africa’s electricity generation capacity. To this end, the Minister highlighted eight reforms that are being focused on, including the New Wheeling Framework (2024); Market Rules for Transmission Access; amendments to the Electricity Regulations on New Generation Capacity (2020 - 2023); Draft Electricity Transmission Regulations; The Grid Capacity Allocation Framework (2024); Wholesale Trading Reforms; and the success of the IRP, JET Framework, SAREM, and Gas Master Plan.
“These reforms are not just technical adjustments. They are the levers to unlock South Africa’s energy future - accelerating transformation, driving industrialisation, and ensuring that the benefits of our energy transition are led by South Africans, for South Africans,” concluded Minister Ramokgopa.
With the Minister’s keynote setting the tone for action and alignment, the day moved to the first plenary session, and turned the attention to the infrastructure required to make this vision possible.
The opening plenary, “Wire for Growth”, shifted the spotlight from policy vision to the infrastructure and regulatory reforms needed to unlock the country’s renewable energy potential. Central to this was how to ensure equitable grid access and manage curtailment as the energy mix grows more decentralised and dynamic.
Monde Bala, Chief Executive of the newly established National Transmission Company of South Africa (NTCSA), outlined the entity’s progress in setting up a dedicated Grid Access Unit to streamline and standardise access to the transmission network. He explained that the interim grid-access rules have already been publicised and are now with the regulator for consideration.
“We need to get to a point where this is codified, so it becomes a licence condition,” said Bala, stressing that clear, enforceable rules would provide certainty to investors and IPPs. He added that a practice note has been issued on the forthcoming curtailment framework, with the NTCSA planning a workshop early next month to unpack its implementation.
From the generation side, Rivoningo Mnisi, Head of Renewables at Eskom, offered a candid view of the utility’s evolving role in the new energy landscape. Mnisi acknowledged the challenge of Eskom acting as the system operator responsible for maintaining grid stability while also participating in energy generation.
Mnisi noted that while Eskom’s unbundling was designed to improve efficiency, the transmission operator would remain a monopoly. However, he emphasised that on the generation front, the utility must now operate under the same regulatory framework as IPPs, particularly when developing large-scale projects in partnership with them.
The discussion underscored the need for transparent governance, predictable regulation, and a coordinated approach to grid access - all vital to ensuring South Africa’s renewable energy ambitions are matched by the infrastructure and oversight to maintain them.
