Cape Town – In a first for South Africa, Cape Town has moved out of the blocks to start construction on its solar photovoltaic (PV) plant as the City moves to diversify energy resources and become a future fit.
On Monday, (7 October 2024), Cape Town Mayor, Geordin Hill-Lewis, and Energy Mayco Member, Alderman Xanthea Limberg, turned the sod at the City’s 7MW – 10 MW Atlantis solar PV plant.
“What an exciting day this is for Cape Town and also for the people of Atlantis,” said Mayor Hill-Lewis.
“This is one of our flagship projects in our priority programme to build a more secure energy future, with advanced plans to diversify energy sources for cleaner and more affordable energy.
“This is so vital as we face another massive Eskom price hike.”
Mayor Hill-Lewis added: “Construction on this R200m project is expected to take about a year, after which we’ll connect the Atlantis solar plant to a nearby main substation to feed 7MW (and potentially scalable up to 10 MW) directly to the grid”.
The solar PV plant is the first utility-scale renewable energy project in Cape Town and will be owned and operated by the City.
The first power is expected to be delivered near the end of 2025.
Mayor Hill-Lewis said the idea was to potentially have several similar plants rolled out across the metro in the years to come.
“Not only are we breaking ground today for the construction of the solar PV plant, but I am thrilled to announce we’ve just issued our very first 5MW battery storage tender,” said Mayor Hill-Lewis.
“The battery storage facility will be constructed on this same site.
“We are leading the pack in South Africa and I am proud that our solar plant is the first one under construction in the country.
“This project forms part of our broader SA-record infrastructure investment of R39,5bn between July 2024 and June 2027.
“Thanks to our officials for their dedication and also thanks to the Atlantis community for the great support that has been shown for this project.”
The City awarded the tender for engineering, procurement, and construction of the plant to the Lesedi Technoserve Consortium.
“At the heart of the City’s investment programme is the desire to boost our local Cape Town economy,” said Alderman Limberg.
“Our Atlantis project will have significant benefits for the economy and job creation, increasing green jobs across various skill levels. We are working closely with all stakeholders.
“The City currently uses 75% of the tariff income from our electricity sales to buy Eskom power.
“With the continued Eskom-price escalations, the most recent being an almost 44% hike requested, we simply have to diversify the energy resources.
“These hikes are not sustainable for the City or our residents and we will continue to fight against these exorbitant increases.
“The Atlantis site will also house our first utility-scale battery storage operation.”
The Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) Project aims to serve as a pilot project to eventually incorporate energy storage within the City’s network.
“By co-locating the battery system at the Atlantis PV plant, it allows the solar PV and BESS to operate in synergy as a hybrid plant,” said Alderman Limberg.
Alderman Limberg said these projects form part of Cape Town’s 2050 Energy Strategy.
