The South African government will need another two to three
months to complete an energy transition implementation plan, further delaying
the flow of funds from an $8.5 billion climate finance agreement with some of
the world’s richest countries.

More work needs to be done on how to reskill workers from
coal-dependent communities as coal-fired plants gradually close down, said
Joanne Yawitch, head of the project management unit for the pact within the
South African presidency.

Yawitch, who spoke at a Presidential Climate Commission
event in Johannesburg on Tuesday, said a government decision that state utility
Eskom would be limited in its ability to take on further loans and government
debt guarantees had complicated matters.

“There are significant challenges on loan finance,”
she said. That moratorium “impacts on what was in the investment plan,”
she said.

READ | Government flags delays with energy action plan

France, Germany, the US, UK and European Union offered the
finance to help South Africa transition away from coal, which is currently the
source of more than 80% of South Africa’s power. The so-called Just Energy
Transition Partnership, a prototype for similar agreements with Indonesia and
Vietnam, has been beset by political infighting and lobbying from businesses
that profit from the use of coal.

The government had earlier said the implementation plan
would be ready in March and later in August.