French energy company Engie has announced the groundbreaking of a 75 MW solar power plant in the Free State Province of South Africa. The Grootspruit project will be built and operated in partnership with Pele Green Energy, a South African independent energy producer.
The Engie-Pele consortium signed the project agreement under the fifth bidding period of South Africa’s IPP Renewable Energy Procurement Program (REIPPPP) at the end of 2023. The other project is the 75 MW Graspan array in the Northern Cape Province.
Both factories are expected to be put into operation at the end of next year. Together they will cover the electricity needs of approximately 80,000 South African households.
“We are proud of these projects, not only for the energy they will generate, but also for the structural development they will bring to local communities and the country as a whole,” said Ronald Chindeka, head of investments and financing at Pele Green Energy .
In November 2023, the South African government said a total of 12 projects under the fifth round of the REIPPPP had reached commercial close and would add a total of 1,159 MW to the national grid.
President Cyril Ramaphosa recently said that South Africa has 22,500 MW of renewable energy in the pipeline.
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