HDF Energy wins Eskom’s public tender to develop renewable hydrogen power plants.
A daring project
HDF Energy plans to deploy 1500MW of PV plants with over 3500MWh of long-term storage. The facility will be located on a 1782 hectare site in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. In addition, storage will be mainly in the form of hydrogen at six different sites and on leased land.
These renewable hydrogen energy plants will meet the needs of 1.4 million people in the region. To carry out these projects, HDF Energy is investing $3 billion, obtained through debt. In addition, the company will be a supplier, prime contractor and shareholder.
A key issue
Nicolas Lecomte, HDF Energy’s Director for Southern Africa, says:
“HDF Energy’s projects in South Africa are kicking off the large-scale industrial deployment of the hydrogen economy in the country and will create jobs in Mpumalanga for workers in the coal industry.”
Currently, 12 of the 15 coal-fired power plants supplying the country are located in Mpumalanga province. Thus, these plants provide 90% of its electricity and meet the needs of millions of people.
HDF Energy will replace the decommissioned coal-fired power plants with renewable energy plants. Unlike conventional renewable power plants, they produce electricity that can be controlled both day and night to ensure the stability of the grid. Clean electricity is intended for local consumption with little exposure to price and supply variations.
