Offshore wind turbines could meet all of South Africa’s energy needs – eight times over: research
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South Africa should tap into its abundant offshore wind energy resources to help address future electricity shortages, say researchers at Stellenbosch University.
In a study published in the
Journal of Energy in Southern Africa, Gordon Rae and Dr Gareth Erfort from the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering at Stellenbosch University said that wind turbines strategically placed off the KZN and Western Cape coasts could contribute a significant amount of clean energy to the country.
“If we were to install wind turbines at different depths off the KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape coast, they could potentially supply approximately 15% to 800% of South Africa’s annual electricity demand,” the researchers said.
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Author: Corporate Communication & Marketing / Korporatiewe Kommunikasie & Bemarking [Alec Basson]
Published: 10/03/2021
We still rely heavily on coal to generate electricity, but with an ageing fleet of coal-fired power plants we should perhaps start to tap into our abundant offshore wind energy resources to help address future electricity shortages.
“If we were to install wind turbines at different depths off the KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape coast, they could potentially supply approximately 15% and 800% of South Africa s annual electricity demand, say Gordon Rae and Dr Gareth Erfort from the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering at Stellenbosch University.
They used geographic information system methods to do the first comprehensive assessment of South Africa s offshore wind energy resources and to identify the most suitable regions for the development of wind farms. Their assessment included marine protected areas sourced from the World Database of P