Globeleq says R5.7bn Red Sands will be largest standalone battery storage project in Africa

Leading African independent power producer Globeleq says the 153 MW/612 MWh Red Sands project, which was recently awarded preferred bidder status under South Africa’s inaugural battery storage public procurement round, will be the largest standalone battery energy storage system (BESS) in Africa and will carry an investment value of R5.7-billion. It is smaller than the 225 MW/1 140 MWh BESS deployed at Scatec’s Kenhardt project, also in the Northern Cape. However,  Kenhardt is a hybrid solar-battery project developed under the separate Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme, which requires the plant to produce 150 MW of dispatchable electricity daily from 5:00 until 21:30.
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Battery storage, renewables procurement make headlines

Engineering News editor Terence Creamer discusses the latest developments with regard to the procurement of new electricity generation capacity and storage.
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Nersa approves revised NRS electricity loadshedding code of practice

The National Rationalised Specifications (NRS) Association of South Africa has announced the approval of the NRS 048-9, Edition 3, Electricity Supply – Quality of Supply: Code of Practice (NRS CoP) by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa).
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Schneider launches entry-level circuit breakers for basic applications

Energy management and automation group Schneider Electric has launched two new entry-level market products – the GoPact Moulded Case Circuit Breaker (MCCB) and the Manual Transfer Switch (MTS).

The products have been designed with the basic entry level of the market in mind that require robustness and reliability, without the premium cost of circuit breaking and automatic transfer switch solutions.

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Role of gas in SA’s future energy mix under intense scrutiny

Given South Africa’s ongoing energy crisis, there remains much debate around whether gas should be included in the future energy mix and, if so, how much. Advocates argue that the fossil fuel is a necessity and a step up from coal – since it produces fewer carbon emissions when burned – but many still oppose its large-scale incorporation into, owing to the global shift towards clean energy technologies such as renewables, battery storage, green hydrogen and even nuclear.
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