Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google News!
The Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) is the most active power pool in Africa. It is made up of 12 countries and home to 360 million people. The total installed generation capacity in the region is 80 GW. The peak demand in the region is 57 GW, however the available capacity is only 48GW according to the figures from the SAPP, leaving a huge electricity generation shortfall. The most affected member states are South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, where citizens face regular electricity rationing cycles known as load-shedding. `
The electricity generation mix in the Southern African Power Pool is dominated by coal. Coal’s share is at 59% (mostly from South Africa and places like Zimbabwe), followed by hydro at 24%, solar PV at 4%, distillate at 3.8%, then wind, nuclear (South Africa) at 3% and open cycle gas turbines at 2%.
