Cop26 leaders back South Africa’s energy transition

An international partnership will support the country’s decarbonisation plans, world leaders announced at the Cop26 conference on Tuesday

The US, the UK, France, Germany and the EU announced a “ground-breaking partnership” at Cop26 to support South Africa, “the world’s most carbon-intensive electricity producer”. The support package combines “private sector finance and public sector expertise” and will make $8.5bn available for South Africa over the next 3-5 years to achieve its decarbonisaton targets. The announcement comes soon after it emerged that state-owned utility Eskom was seeking international investors to further Pretoria’s transition agenda, including investing in new renewable and gas-fired capacity, as well as grid infrastructure. South Africa is heavily dependent on ageing and carbon-intensive coal-fired power pl