The last of Eskom\u2019s six-generation units of the Medupi Power Station project have attained commercial operation status and have been handed over to the generation division.
\nIn a statement on Monday, the power utility said the milestone marks the completion of all building activities on the 4 764 MW project, which commenced in May 2007.
\nThe unit attained commercial operation status and was handed over to the generation division on Saturday.
\nEskom said the commercial operation status means technical compliance to statutory, safety, and legal requirements have all been met.
\nThe utility has since applauded all the teams involved and its execution partners for working tirelessly to ensure the unit is handed over for commercial operation as planned by the end of July.
\n\u201cUnit 1 commercial operation is a historic milestone as it signifies the completion of construction for Medupi power station. This is an investment that will serve generations of the people of South Africa and power the economy for at least the next half-century.\u201d Eskom\u2019s Group Capital Division, Bheki Nxumalo, said.
\nThe unit was officially declared commercial after the completion of the unit optimisation, control demonstration, as well as the 72-hour and 30-day reliability run, which have put all performance guarantees into effect.
\n\u201cUnit 1 was first synchronised to the national grid on 27 August 2019 and reached the full load of 794 MW on 5 December 2019. During this testing and optimisation phase, unit 1 contributed intermittent power to the country\u2019s electricity supply.\u201d
\nThe entity said the first unit, unit 6, attained commercial operation status on 23 August 2015.
\n\u201cOver the following six years four other units were built and brought to commercial status, providing electricity to the national grid.\u201d
\nMedupi uses direct dry-cooling systems due to the water scarcity in the Lephalale area and is the fourth-largest coal-fired plant and the largest dry-cooled power station in the world.
\nThe power plant incorporates “supercritical” technology, which can operate at higher temperatures than Eskom\u2019s earlier generation of boilers and turbines.
\n\u201cImportantly, the technology enables the power plant to operate with greater efficiency, resulting in better use of natural resources such as water and coal, and will have improved environmental performance.\u201d
\nAt its peak during construction, the Medupi project directly employed more than 18 000 people on building activities while another 2 000 supporting employees were hired on site.
\nThe capital cost of the project is R122 billion so far, and Eskom expects to spend in total under R135 billion on completion of the balance of the plant.
\nWorking with communities
\nSince the construction of the project, Eskom has been working with the nearby communities in the Limpopo province.
\nThese include more than 4 600 artisans, technicians, engineers, and managers who were formally trained by Eskom\u2019s contractors, exceeding the entity\u2019s local skills development target of 3 071.
\n\u201cMore significantly, over 60% of the beneficiaries were residents and from Limpopo province.\u201d
\nIn addition, Eskom invested more than R2.9 billion on socio-economic development initiatives to address some of the immediate social needs of local communities.
\nSince its inception, over R145 million was spent on corporate social investment benefitting over 80 000 people with a special focus on rural development, education, and health infrastructure.
\n\u201cWhat remains for the Medupi project is the last part of implementing the agreed technical solutions related to the boiler design defects on the balance of plant. Once these repairs are completed during the next 24 months, Medupi will reliably deliver power to the national grid at full capacity, helping increase energy security for the country,\u201d said Nxumalo. <\/p>\n
Source: South African Government News Agency<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"