Spanish renewable-energy company Acciona’s 94.3 MW Sishen solar photovoltaic (PV) plant, in Dibeng, in the Northern Cape, has reached 100% capacity. The plant entered service on November 29, 2014, with forecasts that it will, in future, generate 216 GWh/y of electricity, enough to supply 100 000 South African households.

The Sishen solar plant covers about 250 ha and comprised 319 600 PV modules, supported on 470 horizontal structures, or trackers, that are programmed to automatically follow the sun across the sky from east to west.

The plant is estimated to get about 2 800 hours of sun a year.

Speaking to journalists on a recent site visit, Acciona Energy South Africa Global CEO Rafael Esteban said renewable-energy projects of this magnitude were not often seen outside the borders of South Africa and that its scale pointed to the electricity constraints the country was facing.

He added that it was “no secret” that South Africa needed more electricity generation capacity and, with demand expected to triple by 2050, renewable energy was both technically feasible and cost effective.

Acciona Energy CEO Rafael Moteo added that South Africa needed an ever-larger supply of energy to undertake its development under conditions of sustainability and security.

“Acciona is committed to this process through a strategy of permanence in the long term and a desire to become a major stakeholder in the electric power system of this country,” he noted.

The company developed the solar park in partnership with local construction company Aveng Group. Soul City and the Dibeng Community Solar Energy Trust also have a stake in the facility.

Esteban highlighted that great focus was placed on creating a “local economics story”, with 3 732 jobs created during the construction phase.

The top management team consists of 87% previously disadvantaged people, and the percentage of disadvantaged women in the team is 46%. Sixty per cent of the people hired are from the local community and 63% of the employees are young people and 6% women.

Further, construction of the Sishen plant generates revenues of R657-million for local companies.

Besides Sishen, Acciona is also involved in the construction of the 138 MW Gouda wind farm, in the Western Cape, awarded in Round 2 of government’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme.

The wind farm is equipped with 46 3 MW turbines supplied by subsidiary Acciona Windpower, which designs and manufactures wind turbines.

Asked whether the company would look at other provinces for future projects, Esteban noted that it could possibly consider establishing projects in the sun-drenched north of the country, adding that the windy Eastern Cape would also be an option for expanding its wind energy services.