FORESIGHT ENERGY REPORT

The role of energy as a critical and essential precursor to both social and economic
development is well established. This is particularly true for South Africa, where social and economic inequities were institutionalised over a long period. The energy sector is already playing a critical role in meeting equity and redress challenges in South Africa.
The inclusion of energy in the foresight exercise will hopefully lend even greater
momentum to this role, whilst identifying core research and technology strategies and priorities for the future. To this end the energy sector, if correctly positioned, will be able to continue underpinning the South African economy well into next century. This underpinning is not only based on low cost, high quality energy sources, supply, infrastructure and use, but also on environmental sustainability and the development of essential skills.
The development of energy foresight has been an exercise that tapped the collective wisdom of a wide variety of South Africans. I feel that this collective wisdom has resulted in a list of research and technology challenges and recommendations that can be used to focus activity in the energy sector — in both the public and the private domain.