SA has developed leading energy technology, won awards for coal-to-liquid and gas-to-liquid technology and this month launched the first electric powered vehicle in France. But does government have the policies to drive the country into a future beyond a coal and oil-based energy economy?
Debating energy security at the fourth Shell Energy dialogue hosted by the University of KwaZulu Natal in association with the FM and Summit TV, experts made it clear that the world had no choice but to find an alternative to fossil fuels.
WHAT IT MEANS
 Carbon capture and storage can be used as a form of mitigation during transition
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Energy security for most people - including panellist Dr Tony Surridge, a senior manager at SA National Energy Research Institute (Saneri) - means having an uninterrupted supply of power, be it electricity or fuel. However, department of science & technology group executive for research, development & innovation Dr Boni Mehlomakulu raised the issue of energy poverty in SA.
"As much as a third of the SA population is without reliable energy sources. Annually as many as 80 000 people suffer from paraffin ingestion and half develop clinical pneumonia; 200 000 children are injured in fires and 10 000 homes are destroyed in paraffin fires; and 1,3m people have died from biomass smoke inhalation," she said.
She questioned why there should be energy poverty in a continent that has abundant sunlight, and why there was not more research into solar power.
Sustainability and supply point to the need for renewable energy. At least 75% of SA's energy production is supported by coal, and the country has solid knowledge in coal-to-liquid (CTL) and gas-to-liquid (GTL) technology.
"We are not focusing on solar energy because other sources of energy are easy to access. We need to bring down the cost of accessing solar because it is abundant," said Mehlomakulu.
For Surridge the energy security challenge is one of a smooth and affordable transition from one energy source to another. Stresses on energy security include the need to import gas, electricity and oil; environmental pressures; and the transformation of power plant, capacity, maintenance and energy efficiency measures.
Environmental pressures are not going to go away, and SA is not going to avoid global environmental issues such as reducing carbon dioxide emissions, he said.
Saneri is working on carbon capture and storage (CCS) - the capture of the carbon dioxide produced during fossil fuel burning. It is then re-injected into the earth so no carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere.
"Despite the concerns and issues about climate change there is an increase in fossil fuel use worldwide, making it necessary to find a means of mitigation while we adapt. CCS is a form of mitigation during a period of transition from fossil fuels to renewable and nuclear energy," said Surridge.
CCS is possible in SA. A preliminary investigation of potential sites indicated that the country had four to 11 times more storage capacity than it needed for the next 100 years at current usage.
Saneri, PetroSA and Sasol are establishing an atlas of CCS sites.
Looking at renewable resource options Mehlomakulu said SA is talking hydrogen technology (fuel cell technology) because the world is talking hydrogen. This technology uses platinum as a catalyst in the conversion of hydrogen to electricity. SA, a platinum-rich country producing as much as 75% of the world's platinum, stands to benefit substantially if it is able to create a niche market for the development of related products.
"The hydrogen strategy for SA (launched September 16) is designed to ensure that the country benefits by developing products that can serve the global hydrogen economy, as well as look at niche applications for new products that are coming out of the hydrogen effort," said Mehlomakulu.
Because of the timelines - the US predicts that only by 2015 would there be a decision to commercialise fuel cell technology, real market expansion would be 2025 - SA could not rely on hydrogen technology for energy security. It was still a research and development effort for the energy security of the future, she said.
Until alternative renewable fuel resources are brought to the market, PetroSA - SA's national oil company - is ensuring that there is adequate fuel supply. It has started on its new multiproduct pipeline from Durban to Gauteng, additional refining capacity and the upgrade of its portside infrastructure, said corporate strategy manager Dr Faizel Mulla.
SA has invested sufficiently in research, development and innovation (R16,5bn in 2006/2007 or 0,95% of GDP) and should continue to do so to advance the frontiers of technology. What is needed is innovative policy instruments, tax incentives and policy paradigms that ensure new forms of energy reach the market, as they cannot compete with existing cheaper forms of energy, said Mehlomakulu.
Are we going to get the policy right? Yes, says Mulla. "The department of minerals & energy affairs has a master plan that clearly outlines policy for the future. "
Mehlomakulu has doubts: "We put too much in the hands of government. There is a need for debate where it is not just government making the decisions and plans. The debate should be between government and industry."
For Surridge: "We have to, otherwise we are dead. Renewable energy has to be embraced irrespective of climate change as fossil fuels are finite. The private sector has not come to the party because it is not profitable, and government is not set up for commercial operation. We need industry to be given incentives and directed to production."
