Biden pledged Wednesday to move South Africa off coal, its main source of energy, toward green energy sources — despite the fact that the country lacks the power to keep its electricity on 24 hours per day.
Darkness surrounds residential homes due to a load shedding blackout by Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. in the Troyeville suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa, on Monday, Nov. 3, 2014. Eskom said South Africa’s power supply remains strained as it investigates what caused a silo storing coal to collapse, forcing the state-owned utility to cut electricity to customers.
On Wednesday — ironically, the same day Biden gave his remarks — the CEO of Eskom, South Africa’s state-owned power company,The frequent power outages represent a severe disruption to economic activity. They also destroy consumer electronics, including mobile phones, due to surges of electricity when the power is turned back on. And the darkened streets add to the sense of insecurity in a country that suffers from high rates of violent crime.
However, the country’s options are limited: it signed the Paris Climate Accord, making it more difficult for South Africa to tap its abundant coal reserves. International investors are also reluctant to invest in coal. Biden’s proposal to move South Africa off coal could exacerbate the country’s ongoing electricity crisis unless renewable energy sources can be developed rapidly and at a scale that would far exceed current power capacity.
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