Construction has started on the 140MW Nxuba wind project located in the Amatole District Municipality.

The project, which is a development by Enel Green Power RSA (EGP RSA), will see an overall investment of R200 million euros and is expected to be complete by September 2020.

Antonio Cammisecra, Head of Enel Green Power, the Global Renewable Energy business line of the Enel Group says that through the start of construction of the Nxuba wind farm, which is the first out of the five projects awarded to the company in South Africa’s 2015 renewable tender to begin construction, Enel confirms its commitment to grow and strengthen its presence in the country.

Cutting emissions

Once completed, Nxuba is expected to generate over 460 GWh per year, avoiding the emission of around 500 000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere each year.

The wind farm will be supported by a 20-year power supply agreement with the South African energy utility Eskom, as part of the South African government’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) tender, which awarded in April 2015 a total of five wind projects for 700 MW to the Enel Group in its fourth round.

Innovative tools

EGP RSA says it will employ innovative tools and practices to build Nxuba. These include advanced digital platforms and software solutions to monitor and remotely support site activities and plant commissioning, digital tools to perform quality controls on site and smart tracking of wind turbine components.

Other projects

The other projects awarded to EGP RSA in Round 4 of the REIPPPP tender are the 140 MW Oyster Bay wind farm, also in the Eastern Cape, as well as the 140 MW Garob, the 140 MW Karusa and the 140 MW Soetwater wind plants, all in the Northern Cape province