The Green House Industry Archives

The South African Coal Roadmap

Main sectors: MINING, ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE, INDUSTRY Client: The South African Coal Roadmap was a national initiative supported by the South African Government, the coal industry and related stakeholders (including Anglo Thermal Coal, BHP Billiton, Chamber of Mines, Coaltech, Eskom, Exxaro, Optimum Coal, SANEDI, Sasol, Shanduka, and Transnet). The initiative was coordinated and administered by the Fossil Fuel Foundation of Africa. Problem Statement: Stakeholders in the South African coal industry identified the need to detail and assess options and scenarios for the future development of the entire coal value chain with the aim of maximising the economic opportunities for coal as an energy and chemical resource, while maximising positive social impacts and minimising negative environmental impacts.. The Green House approach: The Green House was the technical project manager to the SACRM initiative. The project commenced with a research study to document the status quo of all of the stages in the value chain with respect to technologies employed, flows...Read More >

Development of a low carbon action plan for South Africa

Main sectors: MINING, ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE, INDUSTRY, MANUFACTURING, TRANSPORT Client: WWF South Africa Problem Statement: WWF South Africa identified the need to further understand the “why, what and how” of low-carbon planning in South Africa, which, like all emerging economies, faces a multitude of developmental challenges. The Green House was part of a consortium that undertook “blue skies” research to develop a practical approach to low-carbon planning. The Green House approach: Through a series of structured brainstorming sessions, desk-top research and testing, the consortium developed a low-carbon planning framework, which included: a carbon budget framing; stakeholder-developed quantitative systems modelling; a suite of low-carbon and development indicators; and an outline of the institutional and process requirements. Outcomes: A framework and set of tools to support low-carbon planning in South Africa was proposed, which has at its core the collaborative development of system dynamics models, undertaken through mediated modelling. The approach is framed by the concept of a carbon budget which...Read More >

A user-friendly interface for South Africa’s Mitigation Potential Analysis

Main sectors: MINING, ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE, INDUSTRY, MANUFACTURING, TRANSPORT, URBAN SYSTEMS, AGRICULTURE Client: Department of Environmental Affairs Problem Statement: Planning for economy wide mitigation of greenhouse gases requires an in-depth understanding of the individual mitigation options, including the volume of greenhouse gases that they are able to reduce and by when, the capital and operating costs associated with their implementation and the impacts of implementing them on the economy of the country. In 2014 the Department of Environmental Affairs commissioned a study of these options which came to be known as the Mitigation Potential Analysis (MPA). This study was commissioned by the Department to convert the spreadsheet-based MPA into a user-friendly modelling system which they can easily update as new information becomes available. The study also sought to update certain components of the model where new information was readily available. The Green House approach: The Green House chose to use Analytica as the platform on which to build this...Read More >

Alignment of the carbon tax and carbon budgets

Main sectors: MINING, ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE, INDUSTRY Client: Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) Problem Statement: At the time of conducting this piece of work, National Treasury was developing a structure for the carbon tax, while the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) was trialling the first phase of a system to allocate carbon budgets to a selection of individual companies operating in South Africa. BUSA commissioned this piece of work to document areas of alignment and misalignment between these two instruments. The Green House approach: The Green House, in conjunction with our project partners DNA Economics, conducted a comprehensive analysis of all documents relevant to the tax and budget design and implementation, including the mandatory reporting regulations and pollution prevention plans regulations. Outcomes: The study results were compiled into a report submitted to BUSA. The findings of the study have provided a basis for BUSA to engage with Treasury and DEA on the design of the instruments.

Benchmarking South Africa’s industry’s GHG emissions

Main sectors: MINING, ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE, INDUSTRY Client: National Treasury, with funding from the World Bank. Problem Statement: The design of the carbon tax at the time of this project provided a tax benefit for companies whose performance was better than the average, also known as the “Z-factor”. This study was commissioned to explore how a benchmark could be set for different products or processes against which individual company operational performance could be assessed. The Green House approach: Working in conjunction with the European consultancy Ecofys, The Green House conducted an extensive review of how benchmarking is conducted internationally. This was followed by comprehensive data gathering on energy usage and emissions in individual processes, where this was available in the public domain, to determine the types of information that might be available for benchmark setting. Using this information, the project team developed a set of recommendations for setting benchmarks for different industrial sectors and products. Outcomes: The study provided...Read More >

The climate change mitigation technology plan for South Africa

Main sectors: ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE, INDUSTRY, TRANSPORT, URBAN SYSTEMS, MANUFACTURING AND RETAIL Client: Department of Environmental Affairs Problem Statement: The Department of Environmental Affairs is tasked with accelerating the uptake of greenhouse gas mitigation technologies in South Africa. This study was commissioned by the Department with the aim of identifying key barriers to the uptake of a selection of mitigation technologies, and proposing actions to overcome these barriers. The Green House approach: The Green House, in conjunction with partners DNA Economics, conducted an extensive review and analysis of existing policy experience with respect to the target technologies’ roll out in order to document the status quo. An extensive stakeholder engagement process was undertaken to gather experience on barriers from individual role players, and to obtain their views on how these can be overcome. Outcomes: The findings from the analysis were compiled into a report which provides a set of recommendations for actions which DEA and other government departments can...Read More >

Projection of greenhouse gas emission trajectories from the South African mining and minerals processing sectors to 2030

Main sectors: MINING, INDUSTRY, ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE Client: National Planning Commission Problem Statement: in order to support development of South Africa’s National Development Plan, the Commissioners sought to obtain an understanding of the impacts of changes to the structure of the minerals sector in the country, as well as implications of increasing energy efficiency in the sector. The impacts were to be measured in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, employment and economic benefit. The Green House approach: The Green House built an Excel based model which was used to run a series of scenarios of growth of the sector and the impacts on the indicators of interest. Data to populate the model was sourced from the open literature, annual reports of mining and minerals companies and direct communication with these companies. The model was subject to an extensive stakeholder review process to ensure the integrity of the data. Outcomes: The findings of the study highlighted the key sectors contributing...Read More >

Development of an industry mandated “Intended Nationally Determined Contribution” (INDC)

Main sectors: ENERGY and CLIMATE CHANGE, INDUSTRY Client: Business Unity South Africa Problem Statement: In advance of the Paris Climate Change Conference (COP) in 2015, countries had to submit their proposals for, amongst others, their contributions to reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, in the form of Intended Nationally Determined Contributions or INDCs. BUSA sought to provide inputs into the process of development of the mitigation component of South Africa’s INDC and approached DNA Economics and The Green House to develop these inputs. The Green House approach: In order to fulfil the project requirements, the project team conducted a thorough analysis of South Africa’s historical position and commitments in the international climate negotiations; the implications of INDCs and what they were required to include; and the interface with national climate change policies, legislation and other activities. From this analysis a number of potential options for the INDC were proposed, one of which was selected by BUSA as their prepared option to...Read More >

Development of a Minerals Beneficiation Strategy for KwaZulu-Natal

Main sectors: MINING, INDUSTRY Client: KZN Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs Problem Statement: To develop a strategy to support increased minerals beneficiation in KwaZulu-Natal, with a view to the Province deriving maximum economic benefit and job creation from its mineral value chains in an environmentally and socially responsible way. The Green House approach: This multi-year research project undertaken in conjunction the Minerals to Metals Initiative at the University of Cape Town, was conducted over a number of phase: Project scoping that framed and defined the tasks and scope of the studies to be undertaken to inform the strategy. Background surveys that interrogated the status quo in the province in terms of activities and markets, and trends in the business and political climate in which the sector operates. Analysis of the contribution of five selected mineral commodities in terms of their socio-economic development, and the risks and opportunities associated with these commodities. Identification of advanced mineral beneficiation opportunities...Read More >