(Bloomberg) -- Germany’s climate envoy said her country is seeking clarity on South Africa’s plans to slow down the closure of its coal-fired power plants and alter the terms of a landmark climate-finance pact.
The European nation is a founding member of the $9.3 billion agreement, known as the Just Energy Transition Partnership, under which some of the world’s richest nations will give South Africa loans and grants on condition it cuts dependence on coal.
In July, South Africa said it wants to extend the lives of three coal-fired plants that it had agreed to close until 2030 to bolster energy security. It said it would run some other facilities below capacity to ensure it still hit an emission-reduction target, without giving details as to how it would achieve this.
“As for the coal timeline, we understand those tons will be made up elsewhere and we want to understand that,” Jennifer Morgan, who is Germany’s state secretary and special envoy for international climate action, said at an event in Cape Town Monday.
The development could affect about $2.6 billion in financing from multilateral development banks and other sources. The first tranche of this would be a $500 million disbursement from Climate Investment Funds’ Accelerating Coal Transition investment program, which may take a decision on the payment in October.
The failure of a Group of 20 nation to live up to its commitments around coal power would represent a blow to the JETP program, which has pledged more than $40 billion to South Africa, Indonesia, Vietnam and Senegal. South Africa’s retreat from the original terms of its agreement may raise questions about the program’s credibility.
Sign up here for the twice-weekly Next Africa newsletter
Morgan said that she will also meet officials in South Africa’s new coalition government, including Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, this week to discuss both the G-20 summit that the nation will host next year and the COP international climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan later in 2023.
“We want to know what their priorities are,” she said. “The best time to speak to a new government is when they have just come into office and the thinking is fresh.”
You can follow Bloomberg’s reporting on Africa on WhatsApp. Sign up here.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
