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[Johannesburg, 22 February 2012] –

Although most adult South Africans were unaware of the possible exploration for natural gas in the Karoo, when introduced to the concept, the majority said that they are in favour of determining the presence of natural gas in the Karoo. Respondents wanted the pressing issues of job creation, economic development and environmental concerns to be addressed in the process. The prospect of natural gas development creating a reliable domestic energy source that would give more South Africans access to electricity was also of paramount importance.

These were the main findings of an opinion poll conducted by Ipsos for Shell during August and September 2011. Ipsos polled more than 2,000 South Africans on exploration for natural gas in the Karoo Basin.  Face-to-face interviews allowed the interviewers to describe, inform and question respondents on shale gas, the process of hydraulic fracturing, their views on Shell and their hopes for South Africa.

Mari Harris, Director of Public Affairs at Ipsos, said, “Respondents clearly desire more information; they want to know if there is gas, how it will benefit them and what the impact will be.”

Awareness

The vast majority of South Africans (86%) were unaware of the possible exploration for natural gas in the Karoo and only 12% indicated that they had heard the term “hydraulic fracturing”1 before.  As would be expected, awareness by word of mouth is higher among Karoo residents than among those living in other parts of the country, an indication of the greater relevance of shale gas exploration and hydraulic fracturing for people living in this area.

South Africans do want to know if there is gas in the Karoo

However, in spite of the very low awareness, when asked, more than seven in every ten adult South Africans (73%) were in favour of determining the presence of natural gas in the Karoo.  If natural gas was proven to be present in the Karoo the same proportion (73%) would be in favour of gas extraction.  However the proportion of those who are strongly in favour increases (from 39% to 45%), while the proportion of those in opposition decreases to 21%, with a larger group now uncertain as to how they feel about the issue (6%).

After the ideas of supporters of hydraulic fracturing were presented, about seven in every ten (69%) adult South Africans indicated that they were still in favour of gas exploration. After hearing views expressed by critics of the hydraulic fracturing process, the support for gas exploration reduced marginally to about two-thirds (66%).

South Africans care most about job creation

The study highlighted that job security and job creation remain very important issues in South Africa and more than half (54%) indicated that they would like more information on how gas exploration will benefit economic development and create jobs. Regarding infrastructure development, four out of every ten (39%) want information about how it will benefit the supply of and access to electricity. More information about the environmental impact of hydraulic fracturing was important to 41% and a third (35%) would like to know how clean burning natural gas will be.

Notes to Editors

Research Design and Technical Detail
This research project had been commissioned by Shell in order to measure the South Africans’ awareness of potential gas exploration in the Karoo and to gauge the opinion of the South African public regarding this issue.

2 006 face-to-face interviews were conducted in the homes of a representative sample of adult South Africans (18+ years old) using CAPI (Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing) methodology.

The fieldwork period was from 4 August to 2 September 2011.

To promote ease of understanding and to ensure the best possible quality of results, interviews were conducted in the respondents’ language of choice.

The sample included respondents from all population groups, provinces and types of settlements, in the whole spectrum from metropolitan areas to rural areas.

A disproportionately high number of interviews were conducted in the Karoo areas to ensure that the opinions of those members of the public who would be most impacted by any further development in the Karoo were adequately represented.

At the analysis stage all findings were weighted to represent the total adult population of South Africa in its correct proportions.

The sample error is 2, 2%.

For further in information please contact:

Mari Harris, Director Public Affairs, Ipsos South Africa
Telephone: 011 686 8458
Mobile: 082 5575058
Email: mari.harris@ipsos.com
http://www.ipsos.com

Ipsos: The Home of Researchers

Ipsos is an innovative, entrepreneurial, client-focused organisation, providing research services to clients on a global basis. We set ourselves high standards and aim to work collaboratively in partnership with our teams in order to service our clients most effectively.

Ipsos recently acquired Synovate globally.

Ipsos is proud to be the only global market research company that is still controlled and operated by market researchers. We aim to remain the natural home for intellectually curious and passionate researchers.

Our goal is simple: to be our clients’ preferred research partners in our areas of specialisation, based on BQC (Better, Quicker, Cheaper) methodologies and processes. We want our clients to be proud and pleased to work with us – and we want each one of us to be proud and pleased to offer our clients high quality standards, efficiency and intelligence.

1 The process of forcing a mixture of  99% water and sand, with 1% chemicals  into shale formations deep underground to release natural gas.

2012-02-22 13:00

The Karoo is ideal for stargazing, astronomer Kechil Kirkham has said. (Duncan Alfreds, News24)

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Duncan Alfreds

Laingsburg – The Karoo provides the ideal opportunity to observe the night sky for both professionals and amateurs, an astronomer has said.

It’s very dark; many places in the Karoo are dark and that’s very good and that’s rare,” astronomer Kechil Kirkham from Over the Moon Tours told News24.

The Anysberg Nature Reserve recently began a stargazing programme for visitors and Kirkham said that the open plain of the Karoo provided an easy way to observe the stars.

“Mountains are bad for stargazing for two reasons: One is that they generate clouds and potentially rain as well. They also will restrict your view and Anysberg has this beautiful wide open plain. So you can plonk your telescope or lie down on the ground and see all around.”

The 62 500ha reserve has accommodation for about 20 people in cottages although there is also a campsite and plans to build one more cottage.

Astronomy tourism

CapeNature, which owns the reserve, wants to ensure that the area remains unspoilt and as a result, there is very little development on the site.

“There is no light pollution here: It’s one of the darkest spots on Earth. It’s as dark as Sutherland where the Southern African Large Telescope [Salt] and the other telescopes are for the South African Astronomical Observatory,” said Kirkham.

In urban areas, light pollution and atmospheric moisture make stargazing difficult, but rural areas have an advantage in that their lack of development makes it easy to see stars more clearly than urban areas.

“There’s very little in the way of air pollution and perturbations in the atmosphere that you would get around centres of population or places where there’re large forests,” said Kirkham.

The reserve which also features several species of animals such as gemsbok, red hartebeest, the endangered Cape mountain zebra may benefit from an increasing interest in astronomy.

SA is currently bidding to host the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) which aims to build over 3 000 linked radio telescopes in the Northern Cape province.

“I believe that in the Western Cape, astronomy tourism is just going to increase. Even if South Africa doesn’t win the Square Kilometre Array bid, there’s going to be MeerKAT [Karoo Array Telescope].

“The Southern African Large Telescope is now fully operational; all kinds of interesting results are going to be generated from that place which will attract more people to wonder about astronomy – both local tourists and international tourists,” Kirkham said.

Accessing the reserve is not easy as there are no tarred roads and the CapeNature website advises that high clearance vehicles are used, but small groups of visitors may find the experience quite rewarding.

“Most tourists will not have seen a very dark place like Anysberg so I believe that this place can attract all kinds of visitors, but especially those who are interested in stargazing, and those who haven’t seen the Southern Hemisphere night sky, because that’s different here,” Kirkham added.

– Follow Duncan on Twitter
 

Sanlam

Get Sanlam’s view on the Budget Speech

2012-02-20 10:29

Radio telescope dishes stand on the site of the MeerKAT near Carnarvon in the Northern Cape. (Duncan Alfreds, News24)

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Duncan Alfreds

Cape Town – The construction of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will play an important role in development, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) has said.

“Our interest is to see the biggest radio telescope ever being built and we would love to see it being built and wherever it is built, we would love to see the impact this telescope has on development,” Kevin Govender, director for the Office of Astronomy for Development at the IAU told News24.

He said that the project was vital, even in challenging economic times.

“I remain quite optimistic about the project going ahead even in spite of all the financial challenges happening in the world today. Investment into a project like this actually stimulates general growth and development.

“Investing in large-scale science projects has an impact of building human capacity; it has the impact of stimulating industries to be part of this big project.

“I think of all things to invest in, investing in science and technology is a very good idea during hard economic times,” Govender said.

Targeted outcome

The SKA aims to build over 3 000 linked radio telescopes and both Australia and South Africa have submitted bids for the project, expected to cost about €1.5bn and is scheduled for completion by 2024.

Govender insisted that research that didn’t have a targeted outcome was vital for development.

“My office was set up because of the fundamental belief that investing the in the exploration of the universe investing in something of this nature, so called blue sky research, is actually a good thing for development.

“It’s part of human nature and it always has been, that we explore our environment; that we continue to challenge our minds and be curious about the world around us. It is that curiosity that has led us to where we are today.

“If there wasn’t such a thing as blue sky research, if there wasn’t that curiosity, we would not have electricity that we have, the cellphone technology; the satellite technology.”

If SA doesn’t win the SKA, the government has committed itself to building the MeerKAT (Karoo Array Telescope) which will consist of 64 linked radio telescopes in the Karoo.

“We will build MeerKAT, but we have an exciting initiative that we’re currently trying to promote on the continent. That of building a VLBI [Very Long Baseline Interferometer] of radio satellites connected across the African continent and linking in to the VLBI network in Europe as well as the Americas,” said Minister of Science and Technology Naledi Pandor.

Human challenges

Initially, MeerKAT was intended as a test-bed for the SKA, but it has become a relevant instrument in its own right and is scheduled for completion by 2016.

Govender rejected concerns that engineers will be poached to work in whichever country wins the SKA bid.

“It’s a global environment we’re working in at the moment and something like SKA is a projects that’s so big, we need to generate engineers and scientists all over the world and the investment that South Africa has made in terms of building MeerKAT, the investments that Australia has made in the Askap [Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder] – this is all developing each region’s skills capacity.

“You might have engineers moving around, but in the global context we have brought up more skills that contribute to global development.”

The IAU says that development of astronomy should not be seen in opposition to social spending, but rather that it creates an economic boost to improve the lives of ordinary people.

“It shouldn’t be invest in the telescope at the sacrifice of working on poverty alleviation programmes. If you look at the global slices given to science and technology versus how much is invested in development and direct poverty alleviation programmes, you’ll find that science and technology has a very thin slice of that global budget.

“As we grow human knowledge, we are better able to address human challenges,” Govender said.

– Follow Duncan on Twitter
 

INLSA

Jonathan Deal

JOHN YELD

Environment Science Writer

THREE applications to explore for shale gas in the Karoo using fracking are “fatally flawed”, says the Treasure the Karoo Action Group.

This is because the public participation process that each of the companies followed was inadequate, the anti-fracking group’s chairman, Jonathan Deal, told Cape Town Press Club yesterday.

Responding to a question about whether opposition to fracking was coming only from wealthy white landowners and that other Karoo residents were not having their say, Deal said it was an issue that “concerns me greatly” and one that was vigorously debated by the action group’s leadership.

“Our government has failed in its responsibility to ensure that the citizens are told about fracking truthfully and accurately… There are hundreds of thousands of people who know nothing about this,” he said.

But it was not the action group’s responsibility to inform people. “A matter of this magnitude and scale is the duty of government – it’s their critical duty to ensure that everyone is informed.”

Deal said fracking had been banned or was under a partial moratorium in five countries – France, Bulgaria, SA, Switzerland and the Netherlands – as well as states in Germany and Australia and 108 places around the world.

There had to be a reason for this, despite the “so-called” benefits of abundant energy, abundant jobs and reduced greenhouse gas emissions that shale gas offered, he argued.

Deal said a partnership had been finalised between the action group and US anti-fracking lobby group Water Defence, led by movie star and activist Mark Ruffalo.

He said Ruffalo would join the action group board and he would join the board of Water Defence.

“The anti-fracking movement is going global, formally” he said.

A statement issued later by the action group quoted Ruffalo as saying that fracking was “a global threat (that) requires a global response”.

Deal said the move would “considerably enhance” his group’s ability to oppose fracking in SA.

john.yeld@inl.co.za

Sanlam

Get Sanlam’s view on the Budget Speech

Rustenburg – Thousands of protesting miners burnt tyres and torched a police office near Impala Platinum’s Rustenburg mine on Thursday, as a month-long strike at the world’s second-largest producer of the precious metal turned violent.

Police said a miner died of injuries after being beaten during an overnight demonstration. Up to 5 000 miners blocked the road leading to the mine and hurled stones at police, said provincial police spokesperson Adele Myburg.

“This morning they regrouped, started intimidating people who wanted to go the mine, there were people assaulted, vehicles were stoned,” she said, adding that one female police officer had been injured by flying stones.

“The road was barricaded, vehicles travelling on that road were stoned, private vehicles as well as heavy-armed policed vehicles.”

She said that police had made eight arrests, but the situation was still “very tense and hostile”.

Implats said on Thursday it has lost R1.2bn in revenue from the strike at its Rustenburg operations, about 120 km northwest of Johannesburg. The company warned that its total output and earnings for the remainder for the financial year would also be hit.

Production at Rustenburg, which accounts for 60% of Implats’ total output, came to a halt last month after the company sacked about 17 000 employees following a wildcat strike over bonuses.

Chief executive David Brown told reporters on a conference call the company had re-hired about 6 000 of the dismissed workers. He said he could not give an expected date for when the operations would be back up.

The strike is costing the company an average of 3 000 ounces a day, or 60 000 oz so far, as the platinum-rich mines remain shut.

Cost of business

Putting up with lengthy and often costly mining strikes is familiar terrain for investors in South Africa, which is home to some of the world’s deepest and most dangerous mines.
 
Mineworkers are increasingly looking for better pay in return for the hazardous jobs and the government is pushing for an industry-wide improvement in safety.

“The government is quite correctly very concerned around safety issues and until those issues get fixed it is going to cost these guys a lot of money,” said Nic Norman-Smith, a portfolio manager at Lentus Asset Management in Johannesburg.

Shares of Implats tumbled 3.3% to R159.36, making it the worst performer among Johannesburg’s benchmark Top-40.

Implats said it lost an additional 33 000 oz in the final four months from government-ordered safety stops. Some industry executives have criticised the government’s safety push as too restrictive.

Output has also fallen across the industry as a result of the government’s crackdown, helping push the spot platinum price up 17% so far this year.

While lost production is preventing Implats from taking full advantage of the recent recovery in the platinum price, the company cashed in on higher prices in its first half as the weaker rand bolstered the price it receives for its product.

Headline earnings were 573 cents per share for the six months to the end-December, a huge spike from 345c/share in the same period the previous year.

The platinum price fell during the period, but that was counterbalanced by a sharp decline in the rand which Implats said resulted in exchange gains of R608m.

Johannesburg – Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan needs to introduce some changes for provisional taxpayers in his budget next week, the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants (Saica) said on Thursday.

The problem with the provisional tax structure was the underestimate penalty, which was driven off the taxable income numbers without regard to the actual tax paid, Saica said in a statement.

Project director of tax Muneer Hassan said this resulted in penalties being applied irrespective of whether the actual tax paid by the taxpayer was correct, or if it was an overpayment.

Saica recommended that the calculation of the underestimated penalty be amended to take into account the actual tax already paid by the taxpayer.

It said the legislation did not recognise the difference when the recipient was a provisional taxpayer.

“If the taxpayer includes the lump sum, as he or she should in the estimate, the system automatically calculates the tax due for purposes of the provisional payment and the taxpayer ends up having to pay more tax than required,” said Hassan.

He said if a lower estimate was used to calculate the “correct” tax amount, the SA Revenue Service (Sars) could levy penalties for the underestimation of income.

“Sars levies the penalty because the taxable income was underestimated, but the lump sum was in fact already correctly taxed and the tax itself was not underpaid.

“Saica proposes that the law is amended to exclude from the estimated taxable income for purposes of provisional tax for both kinds of retirement fund lump sum benefits and also the severance benefits,” said Hassan.

Other areas of concern included that retirement lump sums and severance benefits were subject to tax at rates differing from those for other taxable income.

AT FIRST glance, Fraserburg in the Karoo appears lost in time, its wide dusty main street almost deserted except for the occasional farmer’s bakkie, scattered shops offering essential provisions and groups of locals taking refuge from the heat beneath one of the few trees.

At about 200km from Beaufort West, the nearest town of any size, and more than 100km from the N1, Fraserburg is not on a route to anywhere except other even smaller towns and vast sheep farms. It is not a common destination, save for those who come to delve back in time and witness one of the most spectacular palaeosurfaces in the Karoo.

We arrive largely by chance while travelling in the Karoo and having met a Capetonian who owns a house in the town and recommended we visit the dinosaur footprints on a nearby farm. Don-Pedro Malan, curator of the museum and in charge of tourism, is accommodating and offers to show us around.

According to Malan, visitors come from all over the world and he proves it by showing us entries in the museum’s visitor’s book from Hawaii, New Zealand, Mexico, Cuba, Spain, Jamaica, and the list goes on.

Together we head out of town on a gravel road for a few minutes until we reach the farm of Gansfontein, where Malan unlocks the gate and directs us along a farm track until we come across a fenced-off outcrop of flat rocks. Here, Malan points out a clear line in the rock, which he refers to as the tail drag of a dinosaur. Not far off are several trackways of large four-footed, five-toed mammal-like reptiles known as dinocephalians and a single set of stubby-toed prints probably made by a primitive reptile known as Bradysaurus. He kneels down and pours water into the print to make it stand out clearly from the surrounding rock. In other areas the surface is so trampled that individual trackways are not as clear, although another section clearly displays “squelch prints” of a large reptile that walked through a patch of soft mud.

Apart from the numerous trace fossils, an array of other structures can be seen as a result of flooding in the area. These include ripples from the current, prod and scrape marks and patches of small pebbles caused by run-off.

Malan explains that these surfaces were originally deposited about 250-million years ago. It is difficult to imagine these primitive creatures roaming what is now a harsh and flat Karoo Hoogland landscape with no living creature to be seen other than sheep scratching among the dry clumps of grass. However, the discovery of the site is much more recent, having been made only after a farm dam burst to reveal the surfaces. Geologists excavated the area in 1984 and it was opened to the public in 1990. Fraserburg authorities are trying to preserve the area and hope to build a covered boardwalk to protect the surfaces from wear and from the rain. Malan says they are “actively looking for funding and hope to interest the private sector in the project”.

Of course nothing else in Fraserburg dates back as far as the dinosaurs but there are other objects of historical interest. The pepperpot, so named because it has the appearance of a giant pepper shaker, is a hexagonal structure that is unique in South Africa and has, as a result, become the symbol of Fraserburg. About nine metres high and made of stone, it was built in 1861 and is now a national monument.

The bell that once hung in the tower is long gone, although the crossbar that supported it can still be seen.

The building served at various times as a magistrate’s office, the market master’s office, was the first library, and the town clerk worked from the building. Next to the pepperpot is the infamous curfew bell, used to sound the beginning and ending of curfew hours for the coloured people of the town during apartheid.

While we photograph the buildings, a curious resident emerges from a house across the road. Daniel Johnson-Barker has lived here with his artist partner, Debbi Morkel, for four years, having left Cape Town’s city life for the peace of the country. However, he bemoans that they are the last English speakers in the town. “All the others have moved on, finding life in Fraserburg too quiet and remote for their liking.”

He had hoped we were looking for property so that the English-speaking population would double.

However, it was the remoteness that appealed to retired neurologist Roland Eastman, who owns a holiday home in town and enjoys the company of colleagues who have bought in the same street and find it the ideal getaway. “The area is referred to as ‘die harde man se Karoo’ (hard man’s Karoo) due to its low rainfall and harsh conditions. But we found its sedimentary geology and consequent plant and bird life interesting,” he says.

A different kind of house is to be found in the park in the centre of town.

This is a corbelled house, which resembles a weaver bird’s nest. It was removed from the veld and rebuilt in the town as an attraction.

Based on a Mediterranean design, it is made entirely of flat stone, including the roof. Such houses were only built in the Karoo by trekkers when there was no timber available for trusses. Visitors can stay in restored corbelled houses on nearby farms. The old vicarage, built in 1856, where Malan is based, is a museum and national monument and still has its original yellowwood floor and some of the original yellowwood ceiling boards.

The energetic seeking a challenge should consider visiting Fraserburg in August, when there is the opportunity of taking part in the annual ice swim in the nearby Nuwe Dam. According to competitive rules, the one-mile swim has to be undertaken in water colder than 5° C. Last year it was 3,9° C.

For those needing to warm up after that, Fraserburg, despite its small size, is not without comfortable accommodation, with several guest houses competing for overseas and local visitors’ business, and two restaurants offering basic local cooking.

• To visit the palaeosurface at Gansfontein farm call Fraserburg Info on (023) 741-1012. The cost is R10 a person. Entrance to the museum is R5 a person.

2012-02-16 15:44

Cape Town – The US non-governmental organisation Water Defence, headed by actor Mark Ruffalo, has joined forces with the Treasure Karoo Action Group (TKAG) against hydraulic fracturing.

The coalition said on Thursday that TKAG chair Jonathan Deal would take up a non-executive director’s seat on the board of Water Defence, while Ruffalo would do the same on TKAG.

“We intend to co-operate with and support TKAG on all levels, including ensuring that fundraising efforts are directed where they are most needed,” Ruffalo said.

“It is a fact that environmental NGO’s have to oppose global giant corporations who have virtually unlimited budgets to push their corporate agendas.”

Deal said the coalition was “one of the most exciting accomplishments in the anti-fracking fight”.

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking as it is commonly known, involves injecting a mixture of chemicals into the earth at high pressure to free natural gas.

The TKAG believes this will harm the sensitive Karoo environment and poison underground water.

Fracking is banned or under some form of moratorium or restriction in 108 places and five countries.

2012-02-17 22:25

Cape Town – The arid Karoo region provides a unique opportunity for city dwellers to do some stargazing with uninterrupted views of the night sky.

CapeNature has established after-dark activities at Anysberg Nature Reserve, close to Laingsburg in the Karoo, where visitors can enjoy views of the night sky without any of the light pollution common to urban environments.

“Our new stargazing activity enables people to enjoy the heavens in all their splendour. Typically on a ‘night out’ at Anysberg one can expect to spot mammals including steenbok, gemsbok, red hartebeest and the endangered Cape mountain zebra.  Now visitors can also explore the night sky on a stargazing platform, complete with telescopes, interpretation and even trained guides,” said CapeNature manager of tourism infrastructure, Wilfred Williams.

The Karoo is ideal for astronomy because the area is dry and underdeveloped.

This contributes significantly to viewing the night sky, and was one of the main reasons the Southern African Large Telescope (Salt) was situated in Sutherland.

The reserve also boasts archaeological sites, rock art and ruins dating from the 1700s, as well as trails and a dam to explore on mountain bikes and kayaks.

Southern Cape police’s Malcolm Pojie on Tuesday said the investigation into a taxi accident that claimed the lives of 19 people on Prins Albert Road in the Karoo was almost complete.

Two taxis ploughed into the side of a stationary truck on the N1 in November last year.

It was initially speculated that the taxis may have been dicing, but that has not been confirmed.

It is understood one taxi driver died, while the other survived.

Pojie said their probe is drawing to a close.

“We have one statement outstanding. As soon as that has been obtained we will submit it to the Director of Public prosecution who will make a decision on whether anyone should be charged or prosecuted.”

(Edited by Lisa Bartlett)

 

Science and technology director general Phil Mjwara said on
Wednesday that if South Africa won the bid, billions of rand would flow into the
local economy.

After updating Parliament’s science and technology portfolio
committee on the bid process, he noted that the cost of building dishes for the
MeerKat radio telescope, in the Karoo, was about R1 billion.

“If we’re spending about R1bn on 64 dishes, you can imagine that
if all of the dishes for the SKA are going to be manufactured here — about 3000
dishes — you can just do the maths. So huge resources are going to flow into
South Africa,” Mjwara said.

“But it’s not just going to be the huge resources; it’s the
intellectual capital that’s going to flow in, with all the spin-offs in terms of
some of the ICT and processing technology that we need for the country.”

Asked if it would be correct to say the SKA would provide a
multi-billion rand boost to the South African economy, he replied: “That would
not be an exaggeration.”

Earlier, the committee heard that the April 4 decision would be
made by four countries: China, Italy, the Netherlands and the United
Kingdom.

For South Africa to win, three of these four SKA founding-member
countries need to vote in its favour.

Science and technology’s deputy director general for research,
development and innovation Val Munsami told MPs that if there was no clear-cut
decision on April 4, deciding which country hosted the SKA could become a
“prolonged process”.

He said this could involve a second round of voting, six weeks
after the first.

If there was still no decision, there would then be “some sort of
negotiation” process, involving further inputs from the two bidders.

MPs were advised on Wednesday not to focus on the “noise” coming
out of Australia on the SKA bid.

Mjwara told them South Africa was focusing on “things we are
doing well”.

These included the country having better infrastructure in place
around the proposed core site, near Carnarvon in the Northern Cape.

Media reports in Australia have stressed its political and
economic stability, and have been interpreted as a swipe at South Africa and its
partners.

While the SKA core site will be built in South Africa — if the
country’s bid succeeds — many of the receiving dishes for the radio telescope
will be spread across eight other African countries.

These are Botswana, Ghana, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique,
Namibia, Kenya and Zambia.

The SKA gets its name from the fact that the total radiowave
receiving area of its 3000 satellite dishes adds up to one square kilometre.

Although about half of the dishes will be concentrated in a five
kilometre wide core region, the rest are to be located further out, some up to
3000km away.

Astronomers believe the power of the instrument — the SKA will
be 50 times more powerful than any previous radio telescope — will help them
unlock some of the universe’s biggest mysteries, including the origin of dark
energy and whether Einstein’s gravitational waves really exist.

Mjwaru said South Africa had been “engaging with China” on
partnerships around the SKA.

He also suggested that the estimated cost of the international
project, Euro 1.5 billion, might be too low.

“We are making contributions into the costing of the SKA… from
the work done by the SKA project office in South Africa, we are of the opinion
that the 3000 dishes we are going to be building, the Euro 1.5 billion may not
be adequate,” he said.

Meanwhile, according to media reports, Australia’s science
minister Chris Evans is to travel to China and Italy this week to make his
country’s case to international authorities.

Australia is in partnership with New Zealand in its bid to build
the SKA.