Karpowership ‘disappointed at distractive tactics’ by civil groups

Karpowership South Africa has hit back at the challenge mounted by green civic organisations against the condonation granted by the department of forestry, fisheries & the environment (DFFE), saying it was disappointed by the move.

TimesLIVE Premium on Thursday reported the condonation granted to the Turkish company to file a revised environmental impact report (EIR) for its Richards Bay facility is on hold after several organisations lodged an appeal against the decision with the department.

They believe the condonation was applied for and granted without proper notice or any public participation.

The company reacted to the allegations in a lengthy statement on Friday morning, accusing the organisations of challenging "what is an objectively practical solution to South Africa’s energy crisis through our projects in Saldanha Bay, Richards Bay and the port of Ngqura".

"It is unfortunate these organisations coordinate their obstructive efforts to oppose valuable projects, efforts which stand in contradiction to their lobbying for the deployment of renewable energy sources.

"They abuse their influence towards the public and deliberately misrepresent facts under the guise of a righteous campaign against Karpowership SA.

"While Karpowership SA has secured preferred bidder status for three of its projects in the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme by being among the lowest priced bidders amid many renewable projects, it intends to form part of the solution that can offer vital electricity to help ease the burden of load-shedding on households and businesses," it said.

The company said the "baseless claims" made by the organisations "continue to impede on the progress of this crucial need for South Africans".

It insisted it made the necessary representations to the department and "in keeping with environmental impact assessment regulations, applied for additional time to submit a generic environmental management programme and conclude an offset agreement with the KwaZulu-Natal conservation authority, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife.

"No further changes were made to the reports, which are clearly marked for the attention of interested and affected parties where applicable. The regulations explicitly provide for an extension of time in circumstances such as these requests, given the strategic nature and importance of the projects.

"In this case, there are no reasonable grounds on which the application could be refused by the competent authority, hence the approval by DFFE."

The company said it remained fully cooperative with all relevant authorities and committed to ensuring its projects meet the necessary standards.

"Time is running out. South Africa’s economy is ailing, and the national morale hangs as these distractive tactics continue. Regardless, Karpowership SA remains committed to this country and believes powerships are a solution that can swiftly deliver affordable, cleaner, reliable and dispatchable electricity to South Africa’s grid."

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