Durban — The Karpowership company says it is ready to connect 450 megawatts to the Eskom grid via Richards Bay on the North Coast of KwaZulu-Natal. The development, expected to increase the Umhlathuze Local Municipality’s chances to attain metro status, was revealed by the company’s chief commercial officer Zeynep Harezi Yilmaz in a telephone interview with Daily News editor Ayanda Mdluli at the weekend.
Speaking from the company’s headquarters in Istanbul, Türkiye, Yilmaz said her company will connect 450 megawatts to the Eskom grid within a year, adding that by the end of next year, Eskom can receive 450MW from the company ship in Richards Bay.
The company was recently granted authorisation to participate in the Environmental Impact Assessment by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, which the company described as a critical milestone, adding that the decision was further justification that its powership exceeded international and South African environmental standards.
Yilmaz said their ships were to supply power, and there would be no need to cut trees or install pipes in the ground, which would cause the relocation of communities. She said their ships would be stationary and would affect marine life less than commercial ships that went in and out of the port daily.
“Karpowership will reduce emissions 50% more than coal so we are moving from coal to renewable energy with 450MW being added to the grid,” said Yilmaz.
“Eskom will power 250 000 to 300 000 households and with the 1 200MW we have been awarded to connect to the grid, we will reduce load shedding by a full stage. In the coming weeks we are expecting the government to grant us an environmental impact assessment authorisation for Coega and Saldanha Bay,” said Yilmaz.
In 2020, SA issued a 2 000 megawatts tender and out of that 1 200 was awarded to Karpowership with 450MW for Richards Bay, 300MW for Coega in the Eastern Cape and 450MW for Saldanha Bay in the Western Cape.
Yilmaz said her company was just waiting to sign the power purchase agreement with the Independent Power Producer’s office and finalise the electric and gas connection. The company already has a footprint in Africa and supplies Senegal and Ghana with electricity.
She warned that South Africa cannot rely on wind and solar energy alone as an alternative source of energy because of changing weather.
Apart from increasing power generation, the Karpowership deal will boost economic development in Richards Bay and create job and business opportunities, especially for emerging businesses. The company has set aside R6 billion for economic development.
On social investment, the company has undertaken to develop rural communities through educational support, skill development transfer, entrepreneurial development and various socio-economic needs including bursaries/scholarships for at least 20 students annually, and solar water geysers for the communities.
Umhlathuze Local Municipality has recently overtaken the Msunduzi Local Municipality in Pietermaritzburg as the second-largest economic hub in the province after eThekwini Municipality and is expected to attain metropolitan status by 2026. With the Karpowership deal and its R6bn investment, its dream of being a metro appears to be closer.
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