Kibo to co-develop long-duration energy storage projects in South Africa

30th May 2022 By: Tasneem Bulbulia - Senior Contributing Editor Online

Aim- and AltX-listed Kibo Energy has entered into an exclusive agreement with Hasta Trust to jointly assess and develop a portfolio of long-duration energy storage projects held exclusively by National Broadband Solutions (NBS) in South Africa, with an initial target of about 36 320 MWh of capacity.

NBS is 100% owned by Hasta.

Kibo says the agreement is a major step forward in its strategy to integrate long-duration energy storage into its commercial project pipeline, and that it follows the conclusion of a framework agreement with CellCube to develop and deploy CellCube-based long-duration energy storage (LDES) solutions in Southern Africa.

Kibo will acquire a 51% interest in NBS, in exchange for granting NBS exclusive access to Kibo’s strategic capabilities and capacity, in respect of long-duration storage solutions, for specific market sectors covered by NBS’s project portfolio.

Kibo will also appoint three directors to the board of NBS with Hasta to appoint two directors.

“We are pleased to have entered into this agreement with Hasta, which aligns perfectly with the company’s strategy to become a significant presence in the long-duration energy storage market and sets up an additional potential revenue stream for Kibo.

“We believe CellCube’s approach to LDES uses the technology most likely to dominate the renewable energy electricity generation sector, for the purposes of a utility-scale battery storage system, to ensure consistent and reliable electricity supply to clients who are increasingly suffering from the unreliable electricity supply by the national utility,” Kibo CEO Louis Coetzee says.

He adds that the projects will service specific industry and business sectors within South Africa, with many of these industries severely impacted by the frequent load-shedding.