The Grootspruit Solar Power Station, is a 75 megawatts

solar power plant A photovoltaic power station, also known as a solar park, solar farm, or solar power plant, is a large-scale grid-connected photovoltaic power system (PV system) designed for the supply of merchant power. They are different from most building ...

under construction in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. The solar farm is under development and is owned by a

consortium A consortium () is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations, or governments (or any combination of these entities) with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a ...

comprising

Engie Engie SA (stylised in all caps as ENGIE) is a French multinational electric utility company, headquartered in La Défense, Courbevoie. Its activities cover electricity generation and distribution, natural gas, nuclear power, renewable energy ...

, the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

multinational utility company and ''Pele Green Energy'', a South African

independent power producer An independent power producer (IPP) or non-utility generator (NUG) is an entity that is not a public utility but owns facilities to generate electric power for sale to utilities and end users. NUGs may be privately held facilities, corporations ...

. The off-taker of the power generated here is Eskom Holdings, the public electricity utility

parastatal A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a business entity created or owned by a national or local government, either through an executive order or legislation. SOEs aim to generate profit for the government, prevent private sector monopolies, provide goo ...

company of South Africa. A long-term power purchase agreement between Engie and Eskom, governs the sale and purchase of electricity between the power station and the electric utility company.

Location

The power station is located outside the city of

Welkom Welkom () is a city in the Free State (province), Free State province of South Africa, located about northeast of Bloemfontein, the provincial capital. Welkom is also known as Circle City, City Within A Garden, Mvela and Matjhabeng. The city' ...

Matjhabeng Local Municipality Matjhabeng Municipality (; ; ) is a local municipality within the Lejweleputswa District Municipality, in the Free State province of South Africa. The municipality includes Welkom, Virginia, Odendaalsrus and Allanridge. ''Matjhabeng'' is a Seso ...

, in Lejweleputswa District, in the Free State. Welkom is located about northeast of

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein ( ; ), also known as Bloem, is the capital and the largest city of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa. It is often, and has been traditionally, referred to as the country's "judicial capital", alongsi ...

, the provincial capital.

Overview

The design calls for 150,000 ground-mounted photo-voltaic cells, with total capacity rating of 75 megawatts. Eskom contracted to purchase the power and integrate it into the national South African grid.

Ownership

The table below illustrates the composition of the shareholding in Grootspruit Solar Power Station. The owners are expected to form a special purpose vehicle company to own, develop, operate and maintain this solar farm. For descriptive purposes we will refer to the SPV as ''Grootspruit Solar Consortium''.

Cost

The cost of construction was estimated at ZAR 1.4 billion (approx. US$76.4 million), as of July 2024.

Construction

The engineering, procurement and construction contract was awarded to a joint venture comprising two South African construction companies; ''Aurex Constructors'' and ''Ablon Construction''. Construction began in H2 2024 and commercial commissioning is anticipated in H2 2025.

References

External links

Power plant profile: Grootspruit Solar PV Park, South Africa

ENGIE Commences Construction on Grootspruit PV Power Plant
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grootspruit Solar Power Station Solar power stations in South Africa Economy of the Free State (province) Matjhabeng Local Municipality 2020s establishments in South Africa 21st-century architecture in South Africa