The OR Tambo District Municipality, one of the most rural districts in the Eastern Cape, is set to become a major player in the green energy sector. Three investors have lined up projects worth over R2.5bn over the next three years, spanning solar, wind, and waste-to-energy initiatives. The projects are being driven through the Ntinga OR Tambo Development Agency, which aims to attract trade and investment to the district.
The investors, including KuGompo City-based Carbon Reduction Technologies (CRT), Agredia Power, and UBU Holdings, have responded to an open tender process. CRT's project involves solar power generation with battery energy storage systems across the district's five local municipalities. The company has partnered with Wolong, a leading global battery energy storage systems manufacturer, to strengthen its technical capabilities.
CRT's chair and managing director, Khaya Mjo, said the project would use renewable sources to generate clean electricity, integrated with battery energy storage systems to store energy and supply it when needed. A pilot project in the King Sabata Dalindyebo (KSD) Local Municipality is estimated at about R1.2bn, with a minimum proposed capacity of 50MW of solar photovoltaic generation and 20MW of battery energy storage.
Agredia Power, also based in KuGompo City, is proposing a waste-to-energy power-generation facility within the King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality. The consortium is backed by Italian firm EP Construction and German company Hafner. UBU Holdings, led by Amanda Gcabashe, is working with the Bhaziya Traditional Council on proposed solar and wind-power generation projects, with a 50MW wind-power project anticipated to require about R1.5bn.
The projects are expected to have a minimum operating lifespan of about 20 years and could provide an economic stimulus to the area, generating demand across various local services and creating opportunities for employment, skills development, and SMME participation. The district's municipal spokesperson, Ncebakazi Kolwane, confirmed that off-take agreements had already been concluded, but the projects remained at the planning and design-preparation stage.
According to Kolwane, detailed implementation timelines will be firmed up during the design stages, once technical scope, site requirements, and implementation needs have been sufficiently developed. The investors will provide the funding and technology, financing and developing the generation infrastructure and recovering their investment through agreed sale of electricity over the applicable contractual period.
The Eastern Cape Chamber of Business has expressed hope that the projects will bring an end to electricity problems in Mthatha and the district, driving away potential investors and helping to solve unemployment. In 2023, OR Tambo announced plans to acquire two decommissioned Eskom hydroelectric power stations on the Mthatha River to improve energy security and reduce load-shedding.
Key points
- The OR Tambo District Municipality has secured R2.5bn in green energy investments from three companies.
- The projects are expected to boost energy security and economic growth in the district.
- The investments will be used for solar, wind, and waste-to-energy initiatives across the district's five local municipalities.
