Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme – fourth window

31st August 2018

By: Sheila Barradas

Creamer Media Research Coordinator & Senior Deputy Editor

     

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Name and Location
Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) – fourth window.

Location
South Africa.

Client
Department of Energy (DoE).

Project Description
Twenty-seven REIPPPP project agreements were signed in April 2018. The projects were identified as preferred bids in 2015, following bid windows 3.5 and 4 of the REIPPPP. However, the procurement process stalled after Eskom announced, in early 2016, that it would no longer conclude power purchase agreements with renewable-energy IPPs, owing to its return to a generation surplus.

The preferred bidders include 12 wind farm projects and 12 solar photovoltaic (PV) projects. The list also includes the 100 MW Redstone Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) project, in the Northern Cape, the 5 MW Kruisvallei mini-hydro project, in the Free State, and the 25 MW Ngodwana Energy biomass project, to be fuelled using waste Sappi wood chips, in Mpumalanga.

The wind projects include:
Roggeveld Wind Farm (147 MW)
Karusa Wind Farm (140 MW)
Nxuba Wind Farm (140 MW)
Golden Valley Wind Farm (120 MW)
Oyster Bay Wind Farm (140 MW)
Soetwater Wind Farm (140 MW)
Kangnas wind project (140 MW)
Perdekraal East Wind Farm (110 MW)
Excelsior wind energy facility (32 MW)
Wesley-Ciskei project (35 MW)
Copperton Wind Farm (102 MW)
Garob Wind Farm (140 MW).

The solar PV projects include:
Sirius Solar PV Project One (75 MW)
Droogfontein 2 Solar (86 MW)
Dyason’s Klip 1 (75 MW)
Dyason’s Klip 2 (75 MW)
Konkoonsies II Solar Facility (86 MW)
Aggeneys Solar Project (45 MW)
Loeriesfontein Orange project (75 MW)
De Wildt solar project (50 MW)
Bokamoso solar project (78 MW)
Zeerust development (75 MW)
Greefspan PV Power Plant Number Two solar park (55 MW)
Waterloo solar park (86 MW).

Potential Job Creation
The 27 new projects will potentially create 58 000 new jobs, mostly during construction and mostly in the rural areas of the Northern, Eastern and Western Cape provinces, as well as the North West, Free State and Mpumalanga provinces. There is also potential to create a further 1 500 jobs in the manufacturing sector as a direct spin-off from the projects.

Value
The successful fourth-round bids are valued at an estimated R56-billion.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
Enel Green Power RSA (EGP), a division of the Enel Group, has reached financial close on five new wind farms with about 700 MW in capacity.

The wind farms – Nxuba and Oyster Bay, in the Eastern Cape, and Garob, Karusa and Soetwater, in the Northern Cape – have a capacity of about 140 MW each. Each project is minority-owned by a local partner.

Construction of the first wind farm, Nxuba, is expected to start by the end of this year. It is expected to be operational in the second half of 2020. Construction of the Oyster Bay and Garob wind farms is expected to start by the first half of 2019, while construction of the Soetwater and Karusa wind farms is expected to start in the second half of 2019. Oyster Bay will become operational in the first half of 2021, while Garob, Soetwater and Karusa will become operational in the second half of 2021.

Once operational, the five projects are expected to produce about 2.6 TWh/y, saving about 2.7-million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year.

Meanwhile, BioTherm Energy reached financial close on a 284 MW portfolio of wind and solar projects as part of the fourth round of the REIPPPP in July 2018. The four projects, on which construction will start shortly, are expected to be fully operational by 2020.

The total cost for the portfolio of projects, which includes the 120 MW Golden Valley wind project, the 32 MW Excelsior wind project, the 86 MW Konkoonsies II solar PV project and the 45 MW Aggeneys solar PV project, is about $500-million.

Goldwind has been appointed the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the Excelsior and Golden Valley projects, which are expected to reach commercial operation by the fourth quarter of 2019 and the fourth quarter of 2020 respectively.

ET Solutions has been appointed the EPC contractor for the Aggeneys and Konkoonsies II projects, which are expected to reach commercial operation in the third quarter of 2019 and the first quarter of 2020 respectively.

Also, solar energy equipment supplier juwi Renewable Energies has concluded three EPC and operation and maintenance (O&M) contracts – with a combined value of R3-billion– with African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM). The contracts will result in 250 MW of additional solar PV electricity being delivered to South Africa’s power grid over the coming few years.

juwi has been contracted to build the 86 MW Waterloo solar park, near Vryburg, in the North West; the 78 MW Bokamoso solar park, near Leeudoringstad, in the North West; and the 86 MW Droogfontein 2 solar park, near Kimberley, in the Northern Cape.

Financial close on the projects was achieved during July, allowing for their moving into the construction phase. Construction will start at Droogfontein 2 in the third quarter of this year, at Bokamoso in the fourth quarter of this year and at Waterloo in the first quarter of 2019.

Under the deals signed, AIIM’s IDEAS Managed Fund is a 50.01% shareholder in the three projects. Debt funding has been provided by financial institutions Absa and Nedbank.

juwi will operate and maintain the solar plants for five years from the start of commercial operation.

Additionally, the three projects are expected to create more than 1 600 jobs during construction and 4 000 jobs during the O&M phases.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
EGP (Nxuba, Oyster Bay, Garob, Karusa and Soetwater wind farms); BioTherm Energy (Golden Valley, Excelsior, Konkoonsies II, Aggeneys wind projects); Goldwind EPC contractor – Excelsior and Golden Valley projects); ET Solutions (EPC contractor – Aggeneys and Konkoonsies II projects); Mainstream Renewable Power (Kangnas and Perdekraal wind farms); Concor and Conco (construction contractor – Kangnas and Perdekraal wind farms); Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (supply and installaltion of wind turbines – Kangnas and Perdekraal wind farms); Ngodwana Energy – biomass project); ELB Engineering Services, KC Cottrell and the ELB Educational Trust EPC contractor – Ngodwana Energy biomass project); Building Energy and G7 Renewable Energies (Roggeveld Wind Farm); Nordex (wind turbines – Roggeveld Wind Farm); Scatec Solar (Sirius Solar, Dyason’s Klip 1 and Dyason’s Klip 2 solar PV projects); Innowind (Wesley-Ciskei wind farm); Elawan Energy (Copperton, Roggeveld, Karusa, Nxuba and Golden Valley wind farms and Redstone CSP); Acwa Power SolarReserve Redstone Solar Thermal Power Plant (Redstone CSP); Solar Capital (Loeriesfontein Orange solar PV project); juwi Renewable Energies EPC and O&M contracts – Waterloo solar park, Bokamoso solar park and Droogfontein 2 solar park)

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
DoE departmental spokesperson Thandiwe Maimane, tel +27 12 444 4256, cell +27 82 450 8591, fax +27 86 581 8505 or email MediaDesk@energy.gov.za.

Edited by Martin Zhuwakinyu
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

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