Virtual High-Level Steering Committee Meeting of the South African-German Energy Partnership

The German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) and the South African Ministry for Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) held their annual high-level steering committee in the context of the Energy Partnership on May 27, 2021. The Director-General for Energy Policy in the BMWi, Mr Thorsten Herdan and the Director-General in the DMRE, Adv. Thabo Mokoena met in the video conference to confirm established working lines and plan joint activities for the year.

It was decided to continue the successful exchange on the focus topics energy storage, green hydrogen/power to X, energy efficiency, digitalization, flexibilization of energy systems as well as just energy transition.

On the German side, representatives from the BMWi, the Federal Ministry for Economic Co-operation and Development (BMZ), Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), the German Missions in South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini, the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) participated in the event. South Africa was represented by the DMRE, Independent Power Producer (IPP) Projects Office, Mintek and the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI). Also invited to the meeting was the Federal Foreign Office from the German side as well as the National Treasury, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, the Department of Public Enterprises, the Department of Science and Innovation and ESKOM from the South African side. 

The German-South African Energy Partnership became operational in 2013. Partners are the German BMWi and the South African DMRE. The Partnership has a full-time secretariat placed in the GIZ South Africa-Lesotho office in Pretoria.