Locked into coal: South Africa’s broken transition
Delayed coal closures are keeping ageing power stations online – raising questions about who is shaping the energy transition, and at what cost. Tulani Ngwenya investigates...
28 April, 2026
Combining traditional investigative reporting with data analysis and geo-mapping to expose eco-offences and track organised criminal syndicates.
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LATEST INVESTIGATIONS
The tech inside Uganda’s militarised conservation state
The deployment of advanced data-aggregation platforms illustrates the dual-use risks of modern eco-surveillance. By Benon Herbert Oluka, Sam Schramski and Tulani Ngwenya
04 May, 2026
A silent killer lurks in Zimbabwe coal capital’s rivers
The rivers in Hwange carry toxic waste from coal mines, sickening residents, livestock and fish alike. Could selenium poisoning be the culprit? Oscar Nkala investigates
22 May, 2026
A silent killer lurks in Zimbabwe coal capital’s rivers
The rivers in Hwange carry toxic waste from coal mines, sickening residents, livestock and fish alike. Could selenium poisoning be the culprit? Oscar Nkala investigates
22 May, 2026
The tech inside Uganda’s militarised conservation state
The deployment of advanced data-aggregation platforms illustrates the dual-use risks of modern eco-surveillance. By Benon Herbert Oluka, Sam Schramski and Tulani Ngwenya
04 May, 2026
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The fence that isn’t: Wildlife, disease and neglect on the SA-Eswatini border
A veterinary cordon fence meant to stop disease is failing – allowing wildlife from a private reserve in SA to trample crops, kill livestock and increase FMD risks in Eswatini...
08 April, 2026 -
Botswana bets on gas boost for flagging economy
Watchdogs are worried about a lack of transparency around a flagship project – and warn against risks for local communities, wildlife and ecosystems. Sello Motseta investigates...
31 March, 2026 -
Vaal’s Hydrogen Hub: Big promises, empty fields
A flagship green hydrogen project is positioned to support industrial development — but there’s no sign of it, and little awareness among locals. #PowerTracker investigates...
25 March, 2026 -
When wind turns deadly
Eastern Cape is home to SA's largest wind farm and has potential for more wind energy development – but at a cost to its Cape vulture population. Andiswa Matikinca investigates...
17 March, 2026 -
Connected, but still in the dark
Thabo Molelekwa investigates how prepaid electricity meters – now common in many municipalities — are encouraging a new form of energy poverty...
02 March, 2026 -
The green panopticon: When saving rhinos means watching people
Tulani Ngwenya investigates how US dollars and hi-tech security have turned South Africa’s game parks into a fortress frontier...
23 February, 2026 -
Uncharted waters: Inside the political battle for control of the Orange Basin oil and gas resource
As Namibia looks set to enter the uncertain waters of the international oil industry, John Grobler analyses the legal and technical challenges emerging as the biggest obstacles...
10 February, 2026 -
Eswatini’s coal comeback: From green promises to black fuel
The approval of a new thermal coal power project derails the kingdom’s green transition efforts, and marginalises local residents, reports Phathizwe Zulu...
29 January, 2026 -
Coal’s slow death in Mpumalanga
As jobs disappear from the coal belt, Middelburg’s economy is buckling. Unpaid rates, collapsing businesses and stalled transition support are deepening the crisis...
20 January, 2026 -
Dawie Groenewald’s Botswana hunting dispute
A leaked recording, court orders and company records place the controversial South African at the centre of a high-stakes struggle over a lucrative Okavango hunting concession...
09 January, 2026 -
Broken promises: Why South Africa’s Fairtrade farm workers feel short-changed
The international certification system promised to help dismantle inequalities on wine farms, but many workers say reality falls far short of promises made...
12 December, 2025 -
Deep threats of drilling the Orange Basin
Climate change, over-fishing and oil-related pollution are collapsing the marine environment off the West Coast. Now there’s the added threat of off-shore oil and gas exploration...
14 November, 2025 -
Court case tackles not-so-proudly-South African solar power
A landmark High Court case challenges the government and independent power producers to apply localisation laws designed to drive South Africa’s green industrial development...
07 November, 2025 -
Inside renewable energy land deals
Long-term leases turn public land into corporate profit, but how are these deals structured, and are communities seeing their share? #PowerTracker investigates...
17 October, 2025 -
Sand baroness’ unfettered mining highlights crisis on the banks of the Limpopo River
Judge slams authorities for not stopping illegal sand mining, but Limpopo businesswoman insists she has the right to mine. Chris Gilili investigates...
19 September, 2025 -
People power: Off-grid communities light up
Local organisations are pioneering off-grid solutions for rural households left waiting in the dark by Eskom. Thabo Molelekwa investigates...
05 September, 2025 -
Red flags along KZN’s South Coast
Andiswa Matikinca tracks concerns around critical minerals mining applications – and now a small harbour – in KwaZulu-Natal’s tourism mecca...
15 August, 2025 -
People who own the sun
#PowerTracker visits a solar project owned by a township cooperative that serves as a model for energy democracy in action...
31 July, 2025 -
The Boegoeberg Blues: A small Nama tribe holds the key to the Orange Oil Basin’s future
A landmark ConCourt ruling has made the Nama people the gate-keepers of ambitious plans to turn the Northern Cape into an energy and mining hub. John Grobler investigates...
18 July, 2025 -
Poachers’ partners: When Kruger’s rangers turn rogue
Insiders describe why, and how, rangers sworn to protect wildlife collude with poaching syndicates slaughtering rhinos. Tulani Ngwenya investigates...
09 June, 2025 -
Beyond the Grid: Pinging power from farms to factories
Solar power moves virtually from farmland in North West province to factories hundreds of kilometres away. How does it work, and what does it mean for the energy transition?...
22 May, 2025
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