Coega power plant on track
[caption id="attachment_41108" align="alignright" width="405"] RELIABLE POWER: An artist's impression of the Dedisa Peaking Power plant, which is set to be completed in August next year[/caption]
A TOTAL of 675 people are busy constructing the Dedisa Peaking Power plant at Coega. With more than a third of the work completed, the plant will start supplying electricity to Eskom from August next year – when needed at short notice to assist in stabilising the grid.
Construction started in September last year on the R3.5-billion power station, which will consist of two open-cycle gas turbines able to produce 335MW of electricity, which is roughly half of Nelson Mandela Bay's power requirement.
The Dedisa plant will help prevent blackouts nationally and complement the city's power supply.
It is the largest construction project at the Coega industrial development zone (IDZ) to date, and during its peak it will employ 1000 construction workers.
Dedisa Peaking Power chief executive Arnaud de Limburg said a large majority of the workforce at the plant had been recruited locally in coordination with the Coega Development Corporation (CDC), and in accordance with the BEE commitments given to the Department of Energy.
He said construction was proceeding in line with the schedule agreed with the department and Eskom.
"The Dedisa Peaking Power plant will be operated in accordance with the terms of the power purchase agreement but will not supply electricity to the grid continuously. Peaking power plants can be dispatched at short notice and assist in stabilising the grid," De Limburg said.
Once operational, the plant will employ about 40 people.
CDC business development manager for energy Sandisiwe Ncemane said the project was strategically situated to benefit all CDC investors based at the IDZ as well as future investors.
"The power generated from the grid will establish and enhance the CDC's capability as a prime investment location. It also adds to the organisation's value proposition through providing efficient incentives by supplying constant demand for electricity within the IDZ," Ncemane said.
The Dedisa Peaking Power project is being led by a consortium of South African, French and Japanese companies, who are also building a second peaking power station, the R6.2-billion Avon project in KwaZulu-Natal.
This plant, with four gas turbines, will generate a total of 670MW of electricity and come online in the middle of 2016.
De Limburg said open-cycle gas turbines were ideal for peaking plants such as Dedisa and Avon, since they were able to start and stop, to address the immediate needs of a network, and stabilise the grid. - Cindy Preller
