The three Gauteng province metropolitan cities in South Africa produce a tremendous amount of waste. Gauteng is after all the home to Johannesburg, of Africa’s economic hub, Tshwane where Pretoria, one of the country’s capitals sits and Ekurhuleni, the country’s aerotropolis. Since the discovery in the 1800s, the modern-day Gauteng has seen a high rate influx of foreigners and locals alike, searching for better opportunities. Coupled with the population growth, the amount of waste that the municipalities handle has increased significantly. It is with this background that the Siemens Southern and Eastern Africa PG Sales team headed by Mark Van Antwerp decided to host a Waste2Energy Workshop in collaboration with the Gauteng Infrastructure Funding Agency (GIFA).
“Gauteng metros have about 7-8 years of landfill space left and it is important for us as Siemens to lead the conversation on this important topic. We had a fantastic turnout from the Cities of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane. More importantly, we involved the national Department of Energy who also gave a key-note address. The conversations were robust and indeed enlightening for all,” says Mark.
Mark added that the cost created from the harmful environmental and social challenges of using landfills is adding up. “Conversion of this amount of trash into power could create a new industry and the much needed jobs in the province. This is not only important for us as PG to grow our business in these trying times but for our sustainability as a company. “
The team also hosted the South Africa Energy Day this month with a focus on the gas turbines portfolio. “Although the South African government’s gas to power program is facing uncertainties it is important for us to remain top of mind. Recent developments in the industrial side of the market indicate that the appetite to get off the grid is getting stronger. Planned for April are customer breakfasts in Tanzania & Kenya.”
Mark concluded by emphasizing that the insights from the interactions with the customers allow us to better understand the ever-changing environment we operate within. “It is becoming increasingly crucial that we allow customer inputs to influence how we package and offer solutions and the ideal time to do that is during early stages of project development or before.”