Supporting the Just Energy Transition

For the past 12 years, Fossil Free South Africa has campaigned against the might and abuses of the coal, oil, and gas industries by going for the money − working to undercut the financial support that allows them to flourish.

With your support, we’ve had some real wins (read some stories here). But this battle is far from over. Fossil fuel companies still enjoy enormous power and privilege. Did you know, for example, that the South African government has leased over 95% of South Africa’s coastline to oil and gas companies?

Nonetheless, as renewable energy costs plummet, the transition to renewable energy is now inevitable − even if it’s not yet fast enough to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis. This raises a critical question: as our energy system changes, who makes the decisions, and who benefits?

These are, or should be, the concerns of the Just Energy Transition (JET), a move away from coal, oil, and gas towards renewable energy in a way that is inclusive and socially just. At Fossil Free SA, we support a truly just and inclusive just transition. Our role is not to build energy projects ourselves, but to help shape the social, financial, and political conditions that make such a transition possible.

Best possible solution

The JET is not guaranteed. It is being actively contested by fossil fuel interests and some politicians still wedded to them, who insist that new coal, oil, and gas projects are necessary for South Africa’s development and job creation (we’ve bust that myth here as part of our Climate Hope project).

It is also being held back by the continued vast financial flows into coal, oil and gas companies, the social licence (public “permission”) that enables these companies to flourish, and public ignorance about the causes of and solutions to climate breakdown.

Importantly, a truly just transition would help to implement aspects of a Wellbeing Economy, which has long been part of our guiding vision.

Our work − challenging fossil fuel finance, demanding transparency and accountability, and pushing for public interest over corporate capture − can help to determine whether South Africa’s energy transition is truly just, or merely a rebranding of old inequalities.

 By pushing for a JET, we are advocating for the best possible solution to the climate crisis, which simultaneously addresses the social ills plaguing South African society. It’s an opportunity for economic transformation that has captured our imagination, and we hope will capture yours too!

Best of all, this opportunity is already under way in some communities. Please read more of our stories for examples.

• South African asset managers argue that they need to delay divestment and transition to protect coal industry jobs, and that they are more responsible stewards of carbon-intensive assets than unlisted owners would be. For example, Old Mutual says, "It is not as simple as flipping the switch on coal." But these arguments ignore the extreme climate risks and economic risks of delaying the transition.
  
  Every coal industry job is already damaging other jobs and livelihoods worldwide, via both climate impacts and other fossil fuel industry externalities. Every coal industry job, currently estimated at around 120,000, threatens millions of jobs elsewhere in the SA economy as carbon border tax mechanisms kick in. Every coal industry job is potentially at high risk of sudden collapse due to sheer pressure of technological change. Every coal industry job is multiple jobs not being created in renewables.