The Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, David Maynier has announced that the provincial government has concluded the signing of the Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with the six candidate municipalities participating in the Municipal Energy Resilience (MER) Initiative in the Western Cape.
The six municipalities include:
Stellenbosch Municipality;
Drakenstein Municipality;
Mossel Bay Municipality;
Overstrand Municipality;
Saldanha Bay Municipality; and
Swartland Municipality.
The province will also collaborate with the City of Cape Town in this regard.
DA Shadow Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Kevin Mileham, said the project seeks to help municipalities in the province generate or buy their own electricity in the medium- and long-term and free its residents from Eskom’s monopoly.
The MER project includes consideration of multiple technologies, renewable energy mixes and financing and contracting mechanisms (amongst others) and presents complex sets of inter-related and inter-dependent projects that are expected to be delivered by incorporating innovative methodologies and delivery mechanisms.