South Africa’s Roggeveld wind farm has reached financial close. This follows the signing of the power purchase agreement by public-sector utility Eskom.
The Nordex Group in South Africa has been awarded a 147MW contract to supply wind turbines.
The wind farm is situated in the Karoo on the boundary between the Western and Northern Cape provinces. The contract includes the supply of 47 AW125/3150 and AW125/3000 turbines with a combined capacity of around 147MW and a high capacity factor of more than 47%.
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According to a company statement, the contract comprises of the delivery of the turbines including the towers, which are to be produced in South Africa, as well as service for at least 15 years.
The local installation work near Laingsburg will begin in 2019. As a result it will create 700 jobs in the construction and operation of the wind farm. Through a broad-based approach this job creation will benefit local communities empowering young South Africans to build their future in clean energy.
Furthermore, the farm will improve the country’s carbon footprint as it will reduce around 24,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from the production of electricity each year.
Roggeveld Wind Farm
According to the project developer G7 Renewable Energies, Roggeveld is scheduled to reach commercial operations in April 2021 and will generate about 613GWh of electricity per year, enough to satisfy the needs of roughly 49,200 households.
“Roggeveld is a great example of the successes of the South African government’s REIPPPP, which not only stimulates private sector investment but also yields substantial benefits for local communities through economic development and South Africa’s electricity consumers at large,” Dr Kilian Hagemann, co-founder and managing director of G7 Renewable Energies concluded.
