Nersa Opposing Legal Bid To Overturn Decision To Grant Karpowership Licences

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) is opposing a legal bid to overturn its decision to grant Karpowership generating licences.

The Turkish company was granted three licences to generate power on floating ships stationed along the country’s coastline in September.

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) has now taken Nersa to court, claiming the decision was “irrational, unreasonable, and taken without regard to relevant considerations or with regard to irrelevant circumstances.”

Nersa spokesperson Charles Hlebela confirmed that his office had filed a notice of intention to oppose the case. Details of the basis of the opposition remain scant at this point.

For its part, Outa argues Nersa granted the licences in question prematurely and without the relevant facts before it. The organisation further argued that the public participation process was conducted without providing all the necessary facts.

Outa believes that Nersa failed in its mandate to act in the best interests of the country and in the papers pointed to the Electricity Regulation Act’s requirements for “a fair balance between the interests of customers and end-users, licensees, investors and the public”.