Eskom to build 32,000MW of new renewable energy in 14 years
South Africa’s energy utility, Eskom, said it will deliver on targets to add 32,000MW of new renewable energy through its newly formed Eskom Green division.
It said that it launched Eskom Green to accelerate the development of utility-scale renewable energy projects and support larger customers in achieving their energy transition goals.
“Eskom Green is a utility-scale renewable energy business that rapidly accelerates the options available to South Africa’s industries to decarbonise,” said Group Executive for Renewables, Rivoningo Mnisi.
“The business is set to increase the supply of renewable energy to enable customers to lower their carbon footprint in their energy consumption.”
Eskom said that Eskom Green’s contribution would be essential to South Africa’s 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) for rapidly adding renewable power to the national grid.
The utility outlined build targets of 5,600MW by 2030, 21,000MW by 2035 and 32,000MW of new renewable power generation capacity by 2040.
“The IRP 2025 is pivotal in the decision for Eskom to enter the utility-scale renewable energy market segment,” it said.
“Eskom Green will have about 6GW of carbon-free electricity available up to 2030, as a result of Eskom’s broad pipeline of renewables and storage initiatives currently under development.”
Dan Marokane, Eskom Group CEO, said that Eskom Green was built on decades of power generation skills and expertise and reflected the successful adaptation of new technologies.
“We have been playing in this space for some time, and we are now putting a stake in the ground — this is a development that South Africa can be proud of,” he said.
The new division is currently under Eskom Holdings as part of the organisation’s unbundling strategy. However, Eskom said it would eventually become an independent, wholly owned subsidiary.
“It will be separated from Eskom to become a wholly owned subsidiary with an independent board, subject to the necessary governance, regulatory and shareholder approvals,” the company said.
Eskom Green targets 6GW of new capacity by 2030
Eskom said it wanted Eskom Green to be the primary energy provider for customers seeking renewable energy at scale in South Africa.
“Eskom Green will use its own renewable generation, supplemented by storage and firming arrangements that support round-the-clock supply,” it said.
“The pricing determination will be clear and transparent, where the wholesale tariff is passed through to the customer, at cost.”
The network, wheeling, and other regulated wholesale charges levied by transmission and distribution operators will not be absorbed by Eskom Green and will not be marked up, it said.
In the future, customers will receive the charges as a separate line item from the price of energy that Eskom Green generates and sells.
“This way, the customer has full transparency on what is paid for energy and what is paid for network use,” the utility explained.
It said that Eskom Green will initially target large industrial demand in the mining and manufacturing sectors and direct Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) to provide solutions to decarbonise.
A second phase of the offering will serve the Eskom Distribution market, municipalities, the South African Wholesale Electricity Market (SAWEM), and the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).
Funding for the initial phases has already been provisioned in Eskom’s approved capital expenditure programme and is expected to be supported by on-balance-sheet funding.
As of Eskom Green’s launch, 17 high-priority projects were identified for implementation across the utility’s existing coal-fired power stations, with a plan to use existing infrastructure.
“This approach of co-locating renewable and conventional generation will be extended to additional sites, with the next project planned for the Komati Power Station,” it said.
“These projects leverage existing infrastructure to support faster deployment, improve cost efficiencies, and strengthen grid resilience.”
By 2030, Eskom Green is targeting 6,000MW of new renewable energy capacity added to the grid, including at least 2,000MW of renewable and pumped storage projects to advance from 2026.
It also expects to start seeing generation at developments such as the 75MW Lethabo solar PV project in the Free State.
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