SA’s energy crisis | South Africans are allergic to nuclear, says Mantashe

CAPE TOWN - Nuclear energy is safe, reliable and cost-effective.

So says the Minister of Mineral Resources And Energy Gwede Mantashe.

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He was addressing the Enlit Africa Energy Conference at the Cape Town International Convention Center.

“South Africans are very allergic to nuclear. They tell us many stories that it can't be clean and it should be dangerous and all those things and we say no, actually we have been running Koeberg for 40 years," Mantashe said.

"In 2024, it will be 40 years and we never had a disaster in Koeberg. It is a safe reliable energy generator. It is costly when commissioning very efficient when generating energy and costly in decommissioning.

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"As we stand here today the lowest cost energy is from nuclear. They give us electricity at 40 cents a unit and nobody else can afford that.”

Mantashe has told investors to have patience as new opportunities begin to come online.

* eNCA's Ayesha Ismail reports.