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
#PowerTracker: Tracking renewable power projects and the decommissioning of coal plants in Sub-Saharan Africa.
LATEST #POWERTRACKER INVESTIGATIONS
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
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
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
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
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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 -
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 -
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 -
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 -
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 -
Whose land, whose power? South Africa’s renewable energy conundrum
Wind farms feed power into the national grid, but the stories behind the land deals are rarely told. Tunicia Phillips investigates a case study in the Eastern Cape...
15 April, 2025 -
On the trail of lithium smugglers in Southern Africa
International data shows a recent boom in lithium exports from Southern Africa to Chinese markets. Where’s it coming from, and how does it get there? #PowerTracker investigates...
07 April, 2025
TOOLS
#WildEye allows you to track environmental crime across the globe
#PowerTracker allows you to track renewable and coal based energy sources
#MineAlert allows you to track and share mining applications and licences
Track biodiversity threats caused by mining licences across Africa
Use ClimaTracker to track weather changes and how these will affect you
Exposing global environmental crime stories
Track developments in rhino poaching court cases across Southern Africa
Instant access to data on rhino deaths and poaching incidents since 2010
#GreenAlert helps you track & share environmental impact assessments
GET INVOLVED
#PowerTracker is a project of Oxpeckers Investigative Environmental Journalism and is based on the #WildEye tool.
The #PowerTracker initiative is made possible with the support of the New Economy Hub and Ford Foundation.
