Western Cape Energy Resilience Programme continues to add more megawatts to provincial grid

On 31 July 2026, Premier Alan Winde chaired a meeting of the Western Cape Integrated Energy and Water Council.

The council was established to drive the Western Cape Government’s power and water resilience efforts.

Opening the meeting, the Premier urged provincial Cabinet members, Heads of Departments, Mayors, Municipal Managers and other stakeholders to maintain the momentum in making the Western Cape completely energy and water resilient.

In his briefing to the council, Mr Alwie Lester, the Premier’s Special Adviser on Energy, explained that if the Western Cape Energy Resilience Programme (WCERP) maintains its progress, a total of 1800 MW of new power will have been installed in the region through the course of the 2026/27 financial year. At this rate, the province will meet its target of 5 700 MW of new energy generation well ahead of the WCERP’s target of 2035.

Deputy Minister of Electricity and Energy, Ms Alexandra Abrahams, and Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation, Dr Jack Bloom, were also in attendance and committed to assisting the provincial government, wherever possible, in securing the region’s energy and water resources.

Western Cape Energy Resilience Programme

Premier Winde noted that load shedding has abated and the national energy system appears to be stable, but this does not mean the country is out of the woods. 

“We must push ahead with the full implementation of WCERP in our region and demonstrate to other province’s that through collaboration, we can enhance our power and water security processes. All of this must be prioritised towards growing our economy.”

Cost of electricity crisis

Many households nationwide are under increasing pressure from the soaring cost of electricity. 

The council noted national Cabinet’s intention to approve the publication of the national Revised Electricity Pricing Policy for public comment. This is much needed to stabilise the cost of electricity in the country and to ease the burden on already cash-strapped consumers.

Water Resilience Strategy

The Western Cape Government is tackling water resilience with the same urgency as it did with the energy crisis.

The overarching priority of the Western Cape’s Water Resilience Strategy, launched in October 2025, is to secure a target of more than 300 million cubic metres of water per year for the province by 2035.

This plan aims to strengthen water security through a range of targeted programmes, including:

• Water Conservation and Demand Management
• Water Augmentation
• Infrastructure Development
• Governance

A key component of the strategy includes the removal of invasive alien plant species in the Western Cape’s waterways.

In this regard, currently two projects are underway, being led by the Western Cape Department of Agriculture.

The Premier concluded the meeting, by emphasising, “Wherever we are in our processes, we must make sure across all our departments and municipalities that energy and water security remain a priority. These are economic imperatives. If we are to keep growing our economy to create more jobs, we cannot take our focus off adding more megawatts to the province’s power grid and conserving water.”