The commissioning of the 7-MW hydropower plant near Bethlehem has been delayed until next year, increasing the project’s costs by almost 30%, said the project development company NuPlanet. The plant’s costs were initially estimated at around R77 million, but will now near R100 million. The company’s managing director Anton-Louis Oliver said that the first 3-MW unit at the Sol Plaatje Dam is set be commissioned in March.
NuPlanet had announced in July that it hoped to come to commission the plant before December 25; however, commissioning was delayed several times from its initially scheduled commissioning date. Oliver said the delays stemmed from late design changes, delays in finalizing the construction of an Eskom transmission line and substation that also pushed back the completion date.
The project, upon completion, will operate two renewable energy power stations using water from the As River, generating and selling 28 GWh a year to the surrounding area.
