African independent power producer (IPP) Red Rocket’s first wind farm in South Africa, Roggeveld, has reached commercial operations.
The project, situated on the border of the Northern and Western Cape province, has an installed capacity of 147 MW and a contracted capacity of 140 MW.
The Roggeveld Wind Farm is now feeding electricity into State-owned entity Eskom’s grid.
Red Rocket notes that its renewable energy projects in operation, under construction or awarded preferred bidder status across the continent now total 750 MW.
Roggeveld Wind Farm was awarded preferred bidder status under Bid Window 4 of South Africa's Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme (REIPPPP).
The project reached the peak of its construction as the Covid-19 pandemic took hold globally, and the build was halted for a short period in adherence to pandemic restrictions.
The company highlights the participation of the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) which invested in the project on behalf of the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF).
Through its involvement, the PIC undertook its first direct equity investment in a wind farm.
The Roggeveld Wind Farm’s shareholding is held in majority by Red Rocket and the African Infrastructure Investment Managers’ (AIIM’s) IDEAS Fund. The AIIM funded the holding company’s equity investment in the Roggeveld Wind Farm through its IDEAS fund.
The other shareholders are H1 Holdings, the GEPF and local communities through the Roggeveld Wind Power Trust.
Built at an estimated cost of R4.4-billion, the 47 Nordex wind turbines at the Roggeveld Wind Farm will generate about 613 GWh/y.