Name of the Project
Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (RMIPPPP).

Location
South Africa.

Project Owner/s
Department of Electricity Energy (DEE), formerly Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE).

Project Description
The RMIPPPP, also known as the ‘emergency’ procurement round, is a response to the short-term electricity supply gap identified in the Integrated Resource Plan 2019.

The objective of the RMIPPPP is to not only alleviate the current electricity supply constraints but also reduce the use of diesel-based peaking electrical generators.

The programme aims to procure 2 000 MW from a range of energy sources and technologies.

The DMRE issued a request for proposal for the RMIPPPP in August 2020.

Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe released the names of the eight preferred bidders on March 18, 2021:

• the 150 MW ACWA Power Project DAO – a hybrid facility comprising solar photovoltaic (PV) and a battery energy storage system (BESS);
• a 450 MW Karpowership SA Coega facility – a gas-to-power plant based on imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) – in the Northern Cape;
• the 450 MW Karpowership SA Richards Bay facility – a gas-to-power plant, based on imported LNG – in the Northern Cape;
• a 320 MW Karpowership SA Saldanha facility – a gas-to-power plant, based on imported LNG – in the Northern Cape;
• the 198 MW Mulilo Total Coega facility – a hybrid plant employing solar PV and imported LNG;
• the 75 MW Mulilo Total hydra storage project – a hybrid facility comprising solar PV and a BESS;
• the 128 MW Oya Energy hybrid facility – a hybrid facility comprising solar PV, wind and a BESS, in the Northern Cape; and
• the 75 MW Umoyilanga Energy – a hybrid facility comprising solar PV, wind and a BESS, Northern and Eastern Cape.

Umoyilanga Energy will operate as a virtual power plant, combining generation from two sites that are 900 km apart. Avondale, in the Northern Cape, will include 115 MW of solar PV and 30 MW of battery storage, while Dassiesridge, in the Eastern Cape, will incorporate 63 MW of wind and 45 MW of battery storage.

To meet its 75 MW dispatchable profile, Dassiesridge will charge batteries from the wind energy at night and discharge power in the morning until the sun rises. The solar installation at Avondale will supply the bulk of the energy during the day, supplemented by wind energy from Dassiesridge. Excess solar energy will be used to charge the batteries at Avondale, which will discharge after sunset.

In June 2021, the DMRE announced the appointment of three additional preferred bidder projects under the RMIPPPP, following the completion of “value for money” negotiations with Norwegian renewables power producer Scatec.

To meet the dispatchable profile demanded under the RMIPPPP, the three projects – Kenhardt 1, Kenhardt 2 and Kenhardt 3 – will together produce 540 MW of solar and 225 MW/1 140 MWh battery storage.

Scatec has indicated that the projects are the only ones selected under the RMIPPPP that rely exclusively on renewable energy, making the three-project portfolio arguably one of the biggest single-site solar-storage hybrids in the world.

The projects will include average local content of 50% during construction, South African entity participation of 51% and black ownership of 41%.

Potential Job Creation
The Oya Energy hybrid facility and Umoyilanga Energy will contribute 3 966 job-year opportunities in the construction and operation of these power plants.

Capital Expenditure
The combined investment value of the initial eight projects is estimated at R45-billion.

The Oya Energy hybrid facility and Umoyilanga Energy projects have a combined investment value of R14.6-billion.

Planned Start/End Date
The Oya Energy hybrid facility and Umoyilanga Energy projects are expected to be online from 2025 onwards.

Umoyilanga  Energy achieved financial close in November 2023, with construction starting immediately. Commercial operations are expected in May 2025.

Latest Developments
Environmental groups groundWork and the South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA) have taken legal action in the North Gauteng High Court to overturn the environmental authorisation granted to Karpowership for its Richards Bay gas-to-power project. The project, a joint venture between Karadeniz and the Powership Group, involves mooring powerships in Richards Bay to import and burn LNG, producing 450 MW of electricity for the grid over 20 years.

The organisations, represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights, argue that the approval process was unlawful and unconstitutional, citing a flawed environmental-impact assessment, inadequate public consultation, and a failure to address climate, air quality and socioeconomic concerns. They have demanded that the authorisation be set aside and reconsidered under a transparent process with full assessment of environmental and climate impacts.

Civil organisations have mounted widespread opposition to Karpowership projects across South Africa, warning that gas-to-power is costly, polluting and locks the country into fossil fuel dependence. Groups, such as  the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), Green Connection and Natural Justice, have challenged related approvals, with Outa having succeeded in overturning Karpowership’s licence from the national energy regulator.

Critics have emphasised that approving a 20-year LNG project undermines South Africa’s climate commitments and contradicts recent decisions such as the rejection of a similar project, in Saldanha Bay, for lack of necessity. They argue that renewable energy and storage can provide cheaper, faster and cleaner alternatives, while powerships threaten coastal livelihoods, marine ecosystems and human health.

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Scatec (Kenhardt 1, Kenhardt 2 and Kenhardt 3); G7 Renewable Energies, ENGIE, Meadows Oya Energy and Perpetua RMI4P (Oya Energy hybrid facility); and EDF Renewables and Perpetua Holdings (Umoyilanga Energy).

Contact Details for Project Information
DEE spokesperson, tel +27 82 084 5566 or email Tsakane.Khambane@dmre.gov.za.