The government of the Republic of South Africa is set to construct an 80 MW/320 MWh battery energy storage system in Vredendal, Western Cape Province. This is after Eskom, a state-owned electricity utility, launched a call for expressions of interest for the deployment of the facility at Skaapvlei substation.
The deadline for the submission of the project proposals is September 11 this year after which following a strict selection process the successful bidder will sign a contract to design, build and commission the storage facility within a period of seven and nine months. They will further operate and provide maintenance services for a period of five years.
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Upon completion, the battery energy storage system facility is intended to help manage intermittent power generated by the nearby 100MW Sere Wind Farm Project
Funding for the project
The proposed project is a part of Eskom Investment Support Project (EISP) and Eskom Renewables Support Project (ERSP), both of are funded by the World Bank through its International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), in conjunction with the African Develop Bank, and the New Development Bank.
Eskom will pay US $415M or its whereabouts for the implementation of the BESS project, which is the first phase of the EISP and the ERSP, using direct payment disbursement method as defined by the World Bank’s Disbursement Guidelines for Investment Project Financing.
Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)
This project comes in the wake of the publication of South Africa’s new Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), which is an electricity capacity plan that aims to provide an indication of the country’s electricity demand, how this demand will be supplied, and what it will cost.