The United States has withdrawn from its partnership with South Africa on a just energy transition, the South African Presidency announced on Thursday.
This decision follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump, formally ending U.S. participation in the International Partners Group, which launched the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) at the COP26 Climate Summit in 2021.
As part of its initial commitments, the U.S. had pledged $56 million in grants and up to $1 billion in potential commercial investments through the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation to support South Africa’s Just Energy Transition Investment Plan (JET IP).
With Washington pulling out, the total amount of international commitments to South Africa’s energy transition now drops from $13.8 billion to $12.8 billion.
This move is expected to have significant repercussions on Pretoria’s efforts to shift toward a fair and sustainable energy model. Currently, over 80% of South Africa’s electricity comes from coal, making the country one of the world’s largest polluters.
