The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) has announced its plans to fund an upcoming hybrid solar photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage facility in the Northern Cape, which is poised to be one of the world’s largest projects of this nature.

The IDC is participating in the project through its funding support to a black economic empowerment group called H1 to acquire a 49% equity in this venture, alongside Norwegian renewable energy manufacturer Scatec.

The facility will comprise 540 MW of solar PV capacity and 1 140 MWh of battery storage. It will supply 150 MW of dispatchable power to the grid, as per a 20-year power purchase agreement that has been signed with Eskom.

In terms of scale, the plant will be 10 km wide from side to side, making it the largest of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, incorporating two-million solar PV modules.

The companies expect 2 000 jobs to be created during the construction period of the project, which will take just over a year.

The project was awarded under South Africa’s Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme, which was launched in August 2020 to produce about 2 000 MW of generation capacity to help address energy supply constraints.  

IDC mining, metals, infrastructure and energy executive Reginald Demana says the investment into this project will add to the R15-billion worth of investment it has injected into the South African renewable energy sector.

“We are excited to be one of the funders of this project. This project speaks to the ethos and mandate of what the corporation stands for, which is the industrialisation of our economy, ensuring energy security, creation of jobs and playing a key role in facilitating meaningful transformation.

“For us, this is just one of many practical ways in which IDC contributes toward the betterment of our economy and the livelihoods of ordinary South Africans.”