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Eskom has revealed that its Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project is almost five months behind schedule, with the first phase only expected to be commissioned in November 2023.
The power utility had initially anticipated that Phase 1 would be completed by 30 June 2023 and that it would commission Phase 2 by December 2024.
MyBroadband asked Eskom about the costs involved with the build and whether Phase 1 was completed on schedule.
“Phase 1 is not complete but the commissioning of the first three sites will be done over the next three months,” the power utility said.
“Final costs are not concluded as the projects are still in execution, but they will be revealed on completion.”
Regarding the second phase, Eskom said it wouldn’t be completed as scheduled.
“Phase 2 of the plan is currently being reviewed and will not be done by December 2024,” it said.
Eskom, in partnership with Hyosung Heavy Industries, broke ground at the first BESS site within the Msunduzi and Impendile municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal in December 2022.
The power utility said the batteries will be charged from the main grid through Eskom’s Elandskop substation once completed.
Phase 1 will have a capacity of 8MW, which the power utility said is equivalent to 32MWh of distributed electricity and is sufficient to provide a town like Howick with power for up to four hours.
In addition, it will boost the electricity network and assist Eskom with meeting peak demand in the evenings.
“The beginning of the construction of the Elandskop BESS is a positive development in our efforts to alleviate the pressure on the national electricity grid,” said André de Ruyter, then-CEO of Eskom.
“This is a direct response to the urgent need to address South Africa’s long-running electricity crisis by adding more generation capacity to the grid, and also to strengthen the grid by adding more storage and transforming capacity.”
The facility in Elandskop is only part of the BESS project’s first phase, which is set to add about 199MW of additional capacity, with 833MWh worth of storage at eight Eskom Distribution substation sites.
This includes around 2MW of solar generation capacity.
Regarding costs, Eskom is funding the project through loans from the World Bank, African Development Bank, and New Development Bank. The power utility estimated the project’s total cost would reach R11 billion.
“The procurement process for this project has been set out by funders, and Eskom is in compliance with it and internal governance,” it said in a statement.
Phase 2 of the BESS project will see Eskom add a further 144MW of storage capacity, which it says is equivalent to roughly 616MWh of distributed electricity.
Eskom will significantly ramp up the solar generation capacity during the second phase to 58MW. Eskom originally anticipated that Phase 2 would be completed by December 2024.
source:Eskom’s big battery storage project is five months behind schedule (mybroadband.co.za)
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