- French independent power producer EDF Power Solutions has reached the commercial operation date for the 140 megawatt San Kraal Wind Farm in South Africa, marking a major milestone in the rollout of its Koruson 1 renewable energy cluster.
Koruson 1 is a 420 MW project under construction near Middelburg, straddling the border of the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape provinces. The development consists of three wind farms: Phezukomoya, San Kraal and Coleskop. Each site has an installed capacity of 140 megawatts. The project is being executed by a consortium led by EDF Power Solutions with controversial South African black economic empowerment partners H1 Holdings, Gibb Crede and a local community trust. It forms part of Round 5 of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Programme (REIPPPP) which was racked with allegations of tender rigging. Only 11 of the 25 projects awarded reached financial close. H1 Holdings was named black economic partner in no less than 21 of the 25 projects. Read more
Located near Noupoort, San Kraal is the first site in the Koruson 1 cluster to enter commercial operation. The remaining wind farms, Phezukomoya and Coleskop, are in the final stages of completion. Full commercial operation across the cluster is expected early in 2026.
The Koruson 1 project includes South Africa’s largest self-build main transmission substation delivered by an independent power producer. The Koruson 400/132 kilovolt substation was energised on 5 April. It has been designed to connect 1.5 gigawatts of renewable energy from the Koruson 1 and Koruson 2 projects to the national grid.
Goldwind is supplying and installing the 26 wind turbines, while a joint venture between Concor and OptiPower is responsible for the balance of plant.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
