Deputy Minister of Public Enterprises Bulelani Magwanishe officially opened the Vuyani Substation in Umthatha earlier this week.

The new R392 million, Eskom-built substation is set to strengthen the electricity supply network of the Eastern Cape. The substation consists of two transformers and six 132kV feeder bays that supply power to the southern region of the province.

Located in Nonkobe village, the Vuyani Substation is officially the biggest substation in the province. The project forms part of a R2.6 billion Eastern Cape network strengthening scheme which includes new substations and upgrades to existing substations.

Eskom group executive Mongezi Ntsokolo said the Vuyani Substation would mostly benefit the Alfred Nzo, OR Tambo and Amathole districts.

Ntsokolo noted that as the first 400kV infrastructure in the province, the substation would help to unlock opportunities for investment and growth through stabilising the power supply network and creating capacity.

“It is basically a transmission substation that has a high-voltage transmission line running from KwaZulu-Natal passing through Lusikisiki and Mthatha areas up to East London,” said Ntsokolo.

Construction on the substation started in April 2012 and was completed in June this year.

Empowering the community

According to Eskom some of the people who were employed to work on the project have received skills that will enable them to find employment in other sectors of the economy.

The training, which involved bricklaying, carpentry and electrical work, formed part of Eskom’s commitment to skills development and localisation.