The South African power utility plans to allocate $4.23bn for wind power and invest $3.03bn in solar energy by 2030
Eskom reportedly plans to invest the amount in three phases from 2022 to 2030. (Credit: seagul/Pixabay)
South African electricity public utility Eskom is reportedly mulling an investment of ZAR106bn ($7.27bn) in wind and solar energy by 2030.
The state-owned company plans to allocate ZAR61.75bn ($4.23bn) towards wind power and ZAR44.25bn ($3.03bn) on solar energy, reported Bloomberg, citing a company presentation on the matter.
The publication said that Eskom had confirmed the presentation as well as the costs but did not give further details.
Eskom’s potential investment in renewable energy is part of a plan that was communicated previously by its CEO Andre de Ruyter for borrowing capital from development-finance institutions for projects that will cut down emissions.
Currently, the company supplies nearly all of its electricity from coal-fired power plants. Earlier this month, the South African electricity utility had disclosed plans of shutting down 8GW-12GW of coal-fired power generation by 2031.
Eskom plans to make the investments in renewable energy in three phases after it obtains funding and regulatory approvals.
The first phase, which will cover the 2022-2023 period, could see 246MW of photovoltaic (PV) solar power capacity built possibly at the Arnot, Duvha, Majuba, Lethabo, and Tutuka coal-fired power plants.
Also included in the first phase are 100MW of solar-generation capacity proposed to be built at the aging Komati power plant and 19.5MW of solar power at the location of the Sere wind farm.
In the second phase, spanning from 2023 to 2025, Eskom intends to build a 750MW concentrated solar power plant at Olyvenhoutsdrift located in the Northern Cape and 600MW of solar PV capacity at Sere.
Furthermore, 300MW of wind capacity at Kleinzee on the northwest coast and 200MW of wind power at Aberdeen in the Eastern Cape are being planned to be added by Eskom.
The company will also plan to build a 250MW renewable energy generation capacity on the sites of decommissioned coal-fired plants as part of the second phase.
The third phase, which will be in the 2025-2030 period, will see the addition of 2.95GW of solar PV capacity along with 3.1GW of wind capacity.