Eskom confirms R4.4bn battery contracts as it moots bigger roll-out

State-owned electricity utility Eskom has confirmed the award of contracts, with a combined value of R4.4-billion, to Hyosung Heavy Industries, of South Korea, and the Pinggao Group, of China, for battery energy storage system (BESS) projects that will be delivered across several sites by the end of June next year. The contracts cover the lion’s share of the individual projects included as part of Phase 1 of a two-phase roll-out being funded by the World Bank, the African Development Bank, the New Development Bank and the Clean Technology Fund.