FG seeks $250 million from BRICS bank to build power transmission lines

18:15 - 17 February 2016

South African bank notes featuring an image of former South African President Nelson Mandela are displayed at an office in Johannesburg January 17, 2013. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko

If approved, the money would be used to build transmission lines connecting solar and wind power plants to a national grid

South Africa has asked the BRICS New Development Bank for $250 million of funding to connect new power plants to the national grid, Economic Development Minister Ebrahim Patel said on Wednesday.

If approved, the money would be used to build transmission lines connecting solar and wind power plants to a national grid, Patel said, as Africa's most industrialised economy turns to green energy to diversify away from coal.

President Jacob Zuma has been under fire in recent months for alleged mismanagement of the country's resources and for many failed policies, including heavily criticized economic, educational and social policies.