Seriti Green CEO Peter Venn says the ease with which individuals with deep coal industry experience have transitioned into renewable energy has been a remarkable aspect of the company’s recent progress in implementing its first large-scale wind projects in the coal region of Mpumalanga.

Seriti Green is majority owned by Seriti Resources, a black-owned coal mining company that has also contracted for all of the 500 GWh of electricity to be produced yearly from the first 155 MW phase of the Ummbila Emoyeni Wind Farm for its eight coal mines.

Licensed traders Energy Exchange of Southern Africa and the NOA Group are the offtakers for the subsequent two 155 MW apiece phases, which have also advanced to financial close, having attracted debt finance from Absa, RMB and Standard Bank.

The three wind developments are part of a multiphase programme to install 750 MW of wind capacity on private farms close to the relatively developed Bethal, Davel and Morgenzon towns, from where Seriti Green’s contractors have recruited more than 50% of the individuals currently building the projects.

It is envisaged that construction of the approved projects will continue for seven years, with each phase overlapping to improve efficiencies while simultaneously providing stable employment for the more than 1 200 people involved in construction.

Seriti Green has already received approvals for another 500 MW wind development in Mpumalanga and permitting work is ongoing.

Should it be successful, Venn says it could result in an expansion of its wind portfolio in the region to up to 3 GW over the coming decade and a bit, which would extend the employment and economic spinoffs even further.

BETHAL HQ

The company has also decided to establish headquarters in Bethal, where it is currently renovating what was previously a bus depot into its head office, and is also considering various ways to increase local content, including prospects for nacelle assembly and the use of concrete towers.

Venn reports that the majority of Seriti Green’s initial team of 17, which has subsequently grown to 65 people, joined from the coal industry; a factor that he believes has been central to the progress made since the company’s official launch in 2023 after Seriti Resources acquired a majority stake in Windlab Africa.

“Their vast experience from the coal mining sector has been invaluable,” Venn tells Engineering News & Mining Weeky, explaining that it enabled Seriti Green to build on existing relationships with the community, municipal authorities and engineering suppliers.

“My personal belief is that no renewable-energy developer will build a wind farm in Mpumalanga without deep mining relationships, as you need to understand the expectations around social labour plans, for instance, as well as those of local government.”

In addition, many of the technical and project management skills have proved to be immediately transferrable, not only in building the projects, but in managing the logistics of bringing in large equipment into Mpumalanga through the Port of Richards Bay in neighbouring KwaZulu-Natal.

ENTREPRENEURIAL ENERGY

Historical links to the supplier community in the territory have also proven valuable, with several small contractors having been integrated into construction alongside more established market participants such as Stefanutti Stocks and Tractionel Enterprise.

By way of example, Venn noted the work being done by a company set up by an entrepreneur named Freddie Mkhwanazi, which is now contracted to do the wire fixing for all of the wind turbine foundations.

“Freddie’s company, HMI Projects, employs comfortably 20 people and we are going to be putting in foundations for the next seven years, which I think offers a visible example of what the Just Energy Transition can achieve,” Venn tells Engineering News & Mining Weekly.

Each phase involves 25 Goldwind turbines that each have a nameplate capacity of 6.2 MW, have blade lengths of 91 m, and which stand at 221 m tall; a few meters short of the 223-m-high Carlton Centre high-rise building, in Johannesburg.

A total of 122 turbines will be installed across all the phases currently approved and the structures are already making a visible impact on the Mpumalanga skyline, with 14 standing and with Venn optimistic that all 25 turbines in the first phase will be in place by Christmas.

Seriti Green expects to deliver electricity from the first wind farm to Seriti Resources’ coal mines at a “substantial discount” to the prevailing Eskom tariff, with Venn stating that the consistency of the wind in Mpumalanga will deliver production yields in line with that being achieved in parts of the country better known for their wind resources.

The wind farms are expected to have an average capacity factor of above 38%, with their production to be highest during peak demand periods.

The initial wind farms form part of a larger R35-billion renewables and storage roll-out by Seriti Green in the province, which includes plans for a 150 MW solar PV generator and an 800 MWh battery storage facility.

The projects will all be connected to the Eskom grid by means of the self-built Vunumoya Main Transmission Substation and the Numoya Distribution Substation, which Seriti Green will hand over to the National Transmission Company South Africa in November.

LOCAL SUPPORT

Besides the adaptability of coal industry professionals to renewables, Venn says the support received from the local authorities in what is the country’s coal heartland has also been noteworthy.

“What has made me the happiest about this project is the way government has accepted us and supported us with open arms. We have four mayors involved and we have a monthly meeting with them to keep them updated on project progress.”

However, he believes there should still be greater policy coordination to ensure that municipalities do not lose out financially from the rezoning involved in permitting a wind farm, which could result in resistance in future.

Venn even suggests that consideration be given to the development of special municipal rates for renewable-energy projects, so as to ensure that any revenue lost as a result of the rezoning is recouped from the wind farm.

“I think there's good alignment at the higher levels of government around the Just Energy Transition. However, there's a lack of coordination when you go that one level down. This is showing up in issues such as rezoning fees, which in Bethal were about eight times what we have paid in other provinces.

“Overall, though, the momentum is very positive, and I think that by building infrastructure and creating jobs we are proving that the Just Energy Transition can deliver for South Africa.”