Mainstream Renewable Power’s South African projects win preferred bidder status
Published by Bella Weetch,
Editorial Assistant
Energy Global,
Global wind and solar company, Mainstream Renewable Power, has announced that 12 of its projects have won preferred bidder status in Round 5 of South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP).
The wind and solar projects, which have a total capacity of 1.27 GW, represent half of the total allocation in the round, which was the most competitive to date, being almost four times oversubscribed.
The win makes the company one of the most successful companies in the history of the South African renewable energy procurement programme, with over 2.1 GW awarded to date. This includes 850 MW of wind and solar generation assets that it has already delivered into commercial operation across Rounds 1, 3 and 4 of the REIPPPP.
The company has achieved a number of firsts in the REIPPPP, including constructing South Africa’s first self-build substation as well as bringing the first projects to financial close and to complete construction in Rounds 1, 3 and 4.
The Mainstream Renewable Power-led consortium, named 'Ikamva', which means ‘the future’ in Xhosa, will deliver six onshore wind projects and six solar photovoltaic (PV) projects, including the first REIPPPP project in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province.
The consortium brings together a range of expertise, led by the company’s 100% African team of over 100 professionals, and comprises Globeleq, Africa Rainbow Energy & Power, H1 Holdings and local community trusts.
As a result of this award, Mainstream Renewable Power will double the size of its South African team and will be actively recruiting another 100 South Africans to support the engineering and construction of the 12 projects. This will make it one of the largest pure-play renewables employers in Africa.
The projects will produce approximately 4500 GWh/yr of green electricity, helping to avoid nearly 5 million tpy of CO2, once fully operational. They will provide South Africa with critical, low-cost, indigenous power and help deliver a just transition towards its clean energy and climate goals.
The win underpins the company’s strategy of building true scale across its global platforms, with the company’s global portfolio now at 16.2 GW. It is the latest demonstration of its accelerated growth trajectory following the 75% acquisition by Aker Horizons earlier in 2021, as well as the announcement of the new 1 GW Nazca Renovables platform in Chile in July 2021.
The company owns 100% of the projects awarded. At financial close, ownership will transfer to the equity consortium: Mainstream Renewable Power (25%), Globeleq (26%), Africa Rainbow Energy & Power (23.25%), H1 Holdings (23.25%) and Community Trusts (2.5%).
For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.
Energy Global's Autumn 2021 issue
The Autumn issue of Energy Global features a varied spectrum of in-depth technical articles detailing recent projects, future projections, and technological advancements in the renewables sector, from companies including MISTRAS Group, Fugro, X1 Wind, Sulzer, and more.
Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/solar/02112021/mainstream-renewable-powers-south-african-projects-win-preferred-bidder-status/
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