South Africa’s State Utility Set to Keep Highly-Polluting Coal Plants Open

Eskom, the state-owned utility of South Africa, has received government approval to keep five of its old polluting coal power plants operational for five years after the country implements a limit on plants’ emissions in 2025. Eskom’s five coal-fired power plants – Hendrina, Grootvlei, Arnot, Camden, and Kriel – exceed the limits of pollutants that would come into force next year. However, the company has appealed with environmental affairs minister Barbara Creecy to keep these plants open for longer, despite the fact that…