Joint statement issued by the Minister of Energy, Dikobe Ben Martins, and the Vice Administrator of China National Energy Administration, Mr Tan Rongyao, Cape Town
On 26 February 2014, Minister Dikobe Ben Martins met with the Vice Administrator of the China National Energy Administration, Mr Tan Rongyao, to discuss cooperation in the field of peaceful and civil uses of nuclear energy.
China has expressed interest to participate in South Africa’s civil nuclear energy projects, and has proposed an agreement which is still under consideration by both parties. The draft agreement includes skills development and capacity building; research and development, the new nuclear build programme, supplier development and localisation, joint marketing, supply of nuclear energy products and infrastructure funding to promote regional nuclear power developments.
The draft agreement follows on two other agreements that deal with various aspects of the energy sector. In 2006, China and South Africa signed the Inter-governmental agreement on cooperation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy, which covers design, construction, operation and modernisation of nuclear reactors, fundamental and applied research and capacity building.
In 2010, the two countries signed a general cooperation agreement in the field of energy, covering oil and gas, renewable energy, energy efficiency and skills development. Since the signing of these agreements the two countries have continued to exchange information and knowledge. China has started training South Africans in the renewable energy sector, and there are plans to expand this to include capacity building in the nuclear energy sector.
During their current visit in South Africa the Chinese delegation is also participating in the South Africa-China Nuclear Energy Cooperation Seminar in Johannesburg from 25 to 26 February 2014.
On the 25 February, the Nuclear Energy Corporation of SA (NECSA) signed a skills development and training agreement with two Chinese state nuclear energy corporations: the China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) and the State Nuclear Power Technology Corporation (SNPTC) . This agreement will lay a foundation for further co-operation in skills development, and will be funded up to 95% by Chinese institutions.
The agreement will create opportunities for young South Africans to enrol in Chinese universities to further their studies in nuclear energy and other specialised areas of energy. SNPTC will use the Chinese universities and nuclear specialising institutions to carry out the function of training interns and personnel in the South African nuclear industry to enhance specialisation in the nuclear energy value chain.
According to Minister Martins, “the visit by the high level Chinese delegation and the hosting of the SA-China Nuclear Cooperation Seminar in South Africa, demonstrates the People’s Republic of China’s confidence in the potential of South Africa’s energy sector”.
Minister Martins further stated that, “policy certainty and predictability in the energy sector has contributed significantly to attracting foreign investors to the successful renewable programme and other energy components of the energy mix”.
In response, Mr Tan Rongyao expressed China’s willingness to participate and invest in the nuclear energy sector in South Africa to support economic development, localisation, skills development and job creation.
The two parties committed themselves to continue engaging on issues of mutual interest in the energy sector, including the nuclear energy industry.
Contact:
Robert Nkuna
Cell: 079 495 7522
E-mail: Robert.nkuna@energy.gov.za
