A South African government delegation has received “firm commitments” from Chinese companies to support the development of more than 100 gigawatts of new electricity generation capacity over the next decade, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, 4 August.
According to the agency, officials from state power utility Eskom, the Industrial Development Corporation, and the Development Bank of Southern Africa met in Beijing with representatives of “a range of state-owned and private sector companies”, said Minister of Electricity and Energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa in an interview with public television.
“There are firm commitments for the establishment of transformer manufacturing industries, as well as for the manufacturing of cables, transmission towers, inverters, and smart meters. Some companies are already expanding their presence in the country,” the minister said from the Chinese capital.
Africa’s largest economy is expanding its electricity infrastructure while gradually reducing its dependence on coal-fired power plants and increasing the use of renewable energy.
As part of this reform, Eskom is to be unbundled into separate generation, transmission, and distribution entities. Plans also include the creation of an independent system operator responsible for managing the power grid, energy trading, and private producer market access.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa approved the latest version of the restructuring plan last week.
Several government programmes are also under way to attract private investment into the energy sector.
“We have already structured the projects, including the expansion and modernisation of 14,500 kilometres of transmission lines,” Ramokgopa added, stating that this opportunity could serve as a gateway for companies looking to expand their operations across Africa.
“South Africa is a starting point. We are bringing all these players together and, from here, they can expand to the continent,” he said.
According to the minister, Europe — which already participates in South Africa’s energy sector — will be the next region approached for new investment. “Those conversations have already begun,” he said.
Source: Diário Económico
Original article: https://www.diarioeconomico.co.mz/2026/08/05/mundo/africa/africa-do-sul-empresas-chinesas-apoiam-expansao-da-capacidade-electrica/
