South Africans urged to conserve energy

Minerals and Energy Deputy Minister Lulu Xingwana has urged South Africans to use energy efficiently as winter approaches. Addressing a summit in Gauteng to discuss electricity distribution, Xingwana said her department was looking at ways to ensure access to safer, efficient and alternative energy sources like Liquefied Petroleum Gas for communities that do not have electricity. They are in discussions with the petroleum and gas industries to look at means of making LPG appliances and services more affordable. Reports states that the department is also conducting research on the effectiveness and viability of solar energy as a renewable energy source.