- Court overturns approval for Eskom’s massive 3000MW Richards Bay gas power plant, halting a key fossil fuel project.
- Finds local communities were excluded, and climate risks, including broader environmental and health impacts, were not properly assessed.
- Sets a powerful new legal standard: public participation and climate accountability are now essential for all major developments in South Africa.
The Supreme Court of Appeal has delivered a judgment that could transform the way South Africa approaches major energy projects. On 17 September 2025, the court ruled in South Durban Community Environmental Alliance and Another v Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment and Others ([2025] ZASCA 134) that the environmental authorisation granted to Eskom for its planned 3000MW combined cycle gas power plant in Richards Bay was unlawful.
This decision has been hailed as a victory for communities and the climate, reinforcing that development cannot override the public’s right to participate in environmental decisions. It also signals that the country’s transition away from coal must not ignore the long-term consequences of fossil fuel-based alternatives.
Eskom, South Africa’s embattled state-owned power utility, sought authorisation to build the plant inside the Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone. It would have relied primarily on imported natural gas, with diesel as a backup, and was framed as a flexible solution to stabilise the national grid.
The environmental impact assessment was conducted by Savannah Environmental and followed by public participation meetings. The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment issued the authorisation in December 2019, and the Minister later dismissed appeals from environmental groups. A review application to the High Court also failed, prompting the community alliance to take the matter to the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Flawed public participation
At the heart of the court’s ruling was its finding that the public participation process was deeply inadequate and exclusionary. Notices were published only in English and Afrikaans newspapers, even though the majority of people in the affected area are isiZulu-speaking.
This meant that thousands of residents, including fisherfolk, small business owners, and informal settlement communities, were effectively excluded from understanding or commenting on the proposal. The court found this violated the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) and the constitutional right to participate in decisions affecting one’s environment.
The court also criticised the environmental assessment for failing to properly evaluate the project’s climate change impacts. It noted that the analysis ignored upstream emissions from gas production, downstream cumulative effects, and realistic renewable energy alternatives.
The judges rejected Eskom’s argument that the plant’s necessity could be assumed from national energy policy frameworks like the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). They emphasised that NEMA requires decision-makers to engage with all relevant environmental, social, and economic considerations, not just rely on policy assumptions.
Remedy and significance
Because of the fundamental defects, the Supreme Court of Appeal set aside the environmental authorisation outright rather than sending it back for reconsideration. Eskom may still reapply, but only through a lawful process that meaningfully involves the public and fully addresses climate impacts and alternatives.
The judgment marks a watershed moment for environmental governance in South Africa. It makes clear that public participation must be real, accessible, and culturally appropriate, and that decision-makers have a legal duty to engage with climate change, cumulative impacts, and feasible alternatives.
Above all, it reinforces that the environmental management principles in NEMA are not technicalities but binding obligations that override narrow procedural compliance. For the communities around Richards Bay, the decision represents recognition of their right to be heard and their power to shape the future of their environment.
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