Energy transitions are fraught with uncertainty and competing priorities. For South Africa an energy transition must be least cost, within a reasonable carbon budget and must contribute to lifting people out of poverty, inequality and unemployment. These transitions are subject to significant political, technical and market uncertainty which leads to a range of narratives describing potential transition pathways. Notably in South Africa this is most heated around the role of gas in our transition.
The event will host several proponents of different perspectives on energy transitions in South Africa and will deal with questions around justice, technology choice, governance and finance of a just energy transition. What for example is the role of domestic gas exploitation and its contribution to energy security and job creation? How quickly can South Africa be feasibly expected to transition? How do we navigate what the nation sees as possible and conditional offers of support?
