Cape Town to spend R71.2bn on energy projects

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The city's mayoral committee member for energy, Xanthea Limberg, outlines the way the energy directorate will spend R71.2bn over the next three years.

“Some of the investment will be in streetlighting, curbing energy theft and vandalism and focusing on load-shedding protection while investing in the growing energy needs of Cape Town.

“Our programme to upgrade and enhance the capacity of our Steenbras plant at an amount of more than R1.2 bn over the next three years is making significant progress, and we are also taking great strides in our solar PV programmes.

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“This year, some R1.3bn capital expenditure has been set aside, including R75.5m on our street and public lighting programme. In line with our energy efficiency strategy, we are expanding our LED streetlight replacement programme with an R160m injection over the next three years.

“We have also set aside a total project amount of R183m for our pioneering small-scale embedded generation programme and some R57m to enhance the power output capabilities of the soon-to-be-completed Atlantis Solar plant with our first battery storage project.

“We are also investing in various critical infrastructure upgrades across the metro, such as Bellville, Grassy Park, Gugulethu, Oakdale, Melkbos, Paardevlei, Woodstock, Triangle and Monte Vista, among others.

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“We are also looking at investments in the low-voltage depots in Hout Bay and Noordhoek. The city continues its investment in new metering infrastructure with some R100m in the 2025/26 financial year, topping more than R320m for the programme in total over three years.

“Over the next three years, we will continue to focus on energy security and diversification of electricity supply, protecting our electricity infrastructure and endorsing responsible tariff reforms, in alignment with the National Treasury’s tariff reform programmes to realise our stated ambition of a future-fit, sustainable and resilient utility.

“The city is taking part in the treasury’s tariff reform strategies, to ensure the sustainability of our services and that of our services are cost-reflective while giving customers more control over the usage components of the tariffs.

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“We can already see some of these changes reflected in our budget and tariff structures, and we will see more of this in the years to come as all metros and utilities align their tariff structures with the proposed National Treasury reforms."