Name and Location
Sere Wind Farm project, Western Cape, South Africa.

Client
Eskom.

Project Description
Sere, the Nama word for cool breeze, will involve the development of a wind farm, with an initial capacity of 100 MW, at Sere, near Vredendal, in the Western Cape. It will comprise 46 turbines of 2.3 MW each, which will be positioned over 16 km². The area will accommodate a 200 MW facility in the future.

Each Siemens 2.3-108 turbine has a height of 115 m, a rotor diameter of 108 m and a power output of 2.3 MW. The project also includes construction of a new substation and 44 km of 132 kV distribution line linking the new Skaapvlei substation to the existing Juno substation.

Eskom modelling expects that the project will be able to produce 298 000 MWh/y, most of which will be fed into the national grid. The balance will be used in-house.

The project will be connected to the grid through the Skaapvlei substation at 132 kV and into the existing Juno–Koekenaap distribution line.

The project is being developed under Eskom’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme. It is hoped that similar projects will be undertaken by the utility and independent power producers throughout sub-Saharan Africa.

Sere will save nearly six-million tons of carbon emissions over 20 years. The facility will produce enough energy to power about 68 000 standard homes.

Value
R2.5-billion.

The project has been funded by a group of development finance institutions, including the World Bank, the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Clean Technology Fund (CIF) and Agence Française de Développement (AFD).

Duration
Full commercial operation of the wind farm is scheduled for March 2015.

Latest Developments
The 100 MW Sere Wind Farm entered full commercial operations at the end of March, with all 46 wind turbines having been erected and the construction of the Skaapvlei substation and a 44 km 132 kV distribution line completed.
                                                     
Since the energising of the first wind turbine in October 2014, the Sere facility has contributed more than 90 GWh of energy to the national power grid.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
AfDB, World Bank, AFD, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, European Investment Bank and the CTF (loan finance); Siemens (46 wind turbines) and Powertech (substation).

On Budget and on Time?
The construction of the Sere wind farm is expected to be completed by the end of 2014, but Eskom aspires to have the project completed much earlier than indicated.

Contact Details for Project Information
AFD South Africa, tel +27 11 540 7100, fax +27 11 540 7117 or email AFDJohannesburg@afd.fr.
AfDB, Kurt Lonsway, tel +216 7 110 3313 or email k.lonsway@afdb.org.
Eskom media desk, tel +27 11 800 3304/3309/3343/3378, fax +27 86 664 7699 or email mediadesk@eskom.co.za.
Eskom investor relations manager Khanyi Makhaya, tel +27 11 800 2277, fax +27 11 800 2043 or email investor.relations@eskom.co.za.
KfW project coordinator Stefanie Peters, tel +27 12 423 6357, fax +27 12 42 423 6360 or email kfw.pretoria@kfw.de.
Siemens energy sector Meike Wulfers, tel +49 40 2889 8702 or email
meike.wulfers@siemens.com.