18 July 2013
South African mining group Exxaro Resources and French independent power producer GDF Suez have signed an agreement to develop a 600-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant outside Lephalale in Limpopo province.
The proposed site is 17 kilometres northwest of Lephalale in the Waterberg region and adjacent to Exxaro’s Grootegeluk mine. Fuel for the plant will be supplied by Exxaro’s prospective opencast greenfields Thabametsi mine on a surface conveyor belt.
“The mine will supply up to 3.8-million tonnes per annum of run-of-mine coal to the power plant post ramp-up,” Exxaro said in a statement on Monday.
It is expected that coal will be supplied to the plant for up to 25 years, as coal will continue to form a large part of South Africa’s energy mix.
“South Africa urgently requires the installation of additional electricity generation capacity in the near future due to the combination of a low reserve margin and growing electricity demand,” Exxaro said.
“GDF Suez and Exxaro are global leaders in their respective industries and are pleased to be able to combine their strengths to positively impact the baseload power generation capacity, with the aim of assisting in alleviating South Africa’s power supply challenges.”
The plant’s capacity can be expanded to 1 200MW, depending on water availability and grid integration constraints.
“GDF Suez’s partnership with South Africa is gaining momentum, with several agreements successfully concluded during the second quarter of 2013,” said GDF Suez Energy CEO for South Asia, Middle East and Africa Shankar Krishnamoorthy.
“Successful public-private partnerships in the power sector will contribute to the adequacy and efficiency of South Africa’s electricity industry, which is key to the country’s economic development.”
As a key play in the country’s coal mining sector, Exxaro is integrated in the power and energy production value chain, according to CEO, Sipho Nkosi.
“We have taken advantage of the opportunities provided from current regulatory development in South Africa’s mineral and energy sectors to develop a coal mine that can supply new power generating capacity,” Nkosi said.
SAinfo reporter
