Billion-rand opportunities available in SA's green economy - GreenCape

© Tsung-Lin Wu – 123RF.com

Opportunities include:

Water: The residential market for groundwater and rainwater systems in the Western Cape alone could be worth R5.8bn. The potable water reuse market in Cape Town alone is worth R2bn, and the national market for projects that reduce non-revenue water is R2bn.

Energy: By 2035, the South African energy storage (battery) market is expected to reach R14.5bn, the energy efficiency market R21bn, and the rooftop PV market R75bn per year.

Agriculture: Roughly 15% growth is predicted in the use of controlled environment agriculture (which includes high tech solutions like hydroponics, and low tech solutions like net shading). The drone industry, a key component of precision agriculture, was worth R2bn in 2017.

Waste: R11.5bn per year in value could be unlocked by 2023 by diverting up to 20-million tonnes of additional waste from landfill.

What makes the reports unique and valuable to investors, is the fact that the authors of the reports work at the coalface of the green economy, climate change adaptation and sustainable development, says Mike Mulcahy, GreenCape’s CEO.

“In order to grow these [waste, water, energy, sustainable agriculture] sectors, the teams work closely with businesses, investors, government and academics, providing impartial, expert help. This provides them with a unique and comprehensive understanding of both the opportunities in, and what needs to happen to achieve, green economic growth and successful climate change adaptation,” says Mulcahy.

Reducing the red tape

According to Alan Winde, minister of economic opportunities for the Western Cape Government, the funders of the reports, “The Western Cape Government has prioritised the green economy by creating the enabling context. Through partners like GreenCape, we have proactively reduced red tape, we have worked to unlock new markets for green tech and provided accurate market intelligence to attract investment to the green sector in the Western Cape.

"I am particularly excited to see that the Atlantis GreenTech SEZ is on the verge of designation - this is the cumulative impact of many years of work. The MIRs released tonight will help us sharpen the focus on the sorts of investments that will lead to economic growth, the creation of new jobs in this sector and entrench the position of the WC as a leading green tech region.”

The reports are available here.