Solar, wind and hybrid project developer, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and operations and maintenance company JUWI South Africa now has 400 MW of EPC projects in advanced stages of development for mines in South Africa.

This follows the financial close of the 89 MW Castle Wind project, in the Northern Cape, by the African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIIM) Consortium for diversified miner Sibanye-Stillwater’s South African mining operations.

The project was initially developed by JUWI for the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), 

“We’re seeing a wave of formal requests for renewable energy projects from South African mines, largely driven by the energy crisis, commercial considerations and decarbonisation targets.

“The right regulation has been needed to translate this demand into actual projects for mines. The amendments to the licence-exemption threshold and ability to wheel electricity are now allowing us to pivot projects initially developed for the REIPPPP, such as the Castle Wind project, into the private sector, making them a reality. This is a significant milestone for our team of experts who work tirelessly to advance the renewable energy transition in Africa,” says JUWI South Africa MD Richard Doyle.

Wheeling is the act of transporting electricity from a generator to a remotely located end-user through the grid. With most large mines and energy users in South Africa lacking land for large-scale wind and solar projects, the ability to wheel electricity is essential for self-generation.

“The ability to wheel power through the network, combined with the far lower electricity tariffs of solar and wind projects, incentivises mines to either remotely generate their own electricity or purchase it from remote independent power producers, thereby sourcing generation from sites where the resource is stronger. This is a real win for mines, allowing them to save costs, reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and, when used in combination with backup technologies, avoid loadshedding," says JUWI project development head Chris Bellingham.

Castle Wind development manager Sumeet Ramandh says work on the project started in 2011.

"Although there were extensive delays with the government’s procurement process, we remained dedicated to transforming the site into a notable renewable energy asset for South Africa. With the recent regulatory improvements, JUWI took the decision to sell the project to the AIIM Consortium, which secured an Eskom agreement to wheel energy from the wind farm to power Sibanye-Stillwater’s mining operations,” he points out.

AIIM, a division of Old Mutual Alternative Investments, has invested in the project through the IDEAS Managed Fund, one of South Africa’s largest domestic infrastructure equity funds.

Sibanye reported in May that construction on the Castle Wind project would start this month and that the plant would start operations in early 2025.