By Ayomide Otitoju
Alfred Seema, Group Executive of the Strategic Delivery Unit at South Africa’s state-owned power utility Eskom, has been confirmed as a speaker at the African Energy Chamber’s G20 Africa Energy Investment Forum on November 21 in Johannesburg. His participation comes as Eskom accelerates its General Recovery Plan to strengthen energy security and expand generation capacity nationwide, with an eye toward fostering global partnerships in support of a just energy transition.
Eskom has been actively addressing South Africa’s persistent loadshedding challenges through targeted policies. In September 2025, the company launched a Load Reduction Elimination Strategy to bolster the distribution network and mitigate risks in high-vulnerability areas. The strategy follows a three-phased approach: expanding free basic electricity from 485,000 to 2.1 million households, rolling out 6.2 million smart meters over three years, and deploying 250 distributed energy resources over five years. Simultaneously, the Generation Recovery Plan has improved energy supply, with the Energy Availability Factor reaching 70% since August 2025 and the Unplanned Capability Loss Factor dropping to 22.8% between October 1–23.
Eskom’s generation strategy combines upgrading the existing fleet with a transition to cleaner energy sources, aligned with South Africa’s Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) 2025. The plan targets 105 GW of new generation capacity by 2039, including 5.3 GW of nuclear power (expandable to 10 GW), 34 GW of onshore wind, 25 GW of utility-scale solar, 8.2 GW of storage, and 16 GW of gas-to-power, alongside a Clean-Coal Technologies Demonstration Plan by 2030. Eskom is reviewing the IRP to publish its own updated strategic plan.
Recent milestones include a 20-year license extension for the Koeberg Nuclear Power Station, securing 1,860 MW of baseload power until 2045, and the September 2025 commercial operation of Unit 6 at the Kusile Power Station, completing Medupi and Kusile coal plants to deliver up to 9,600 MW. Simplified registration for Small-Scale Embedded Generation has also enabled private investment in generation capacity.
The South African government is unbundling Eskom into three entities—generation, transmission, and distribution—to improve efficiency, attract private investment, and enhance sector competition. The National Transmission Company of South Africa, the transmission entity, began operations in July 2024, though financial viability challenges remain. The G20 Forum aims to connect global capital with South African power projects to support these reforms.
“South Africa’s path to energy security depends on embracing a truly diversified mix. Eskom’s generation plan marks a decisive shift toward balanced growth,” said NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber. “Through platforms like the G20 Africa Energy Investment Forum, we can attract the right partners and capital to ensure every household and industry benefits from affordable, reliable power.”
