Elitheni power station

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Elitheni power station was a proposed 250-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power station in South Africa.

Location

The map below shows Indwe, the approximate location where the plant would be built.

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Background

In 2008, IPSA Group agreed that it would develop a 250 megawatt (MW) power plant at Strategic Natural Resources’ (SNR) Elitheni mine mouth. The contract included a 20 million tonne off-take - with 1 million tonnes per year for 20 years.

In 2010, IPSA said it could not proceed with the coal plant due to set-backs relating to South Africa’s public utility group Eskom, which was delaying contracts for power generation.

SNR said it was exploring other options for the sale of coal from its 150 million tonne Elitheni mine, which had completed a feasibility study.

In 2013, SNR CEO Gabriel Ruhan said the company would be advancing a power station plan at the mine in the following year.

By 2015, SNR was sold and the Elitheni mine closed. Plans for the coal plant are likely cancelled.

Molteno-Indiwe Coalfields

The Council of Geosciences and the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy are bringing the Molteno-Indiwe coalfields back into focus.

In November 2020, the Council of Geosciences noted that the extraction of Eastern Cape coal should be done in a “responsible” manner while furthering experimentation with “clean coal technology.” The organization’s chief executive, Mosa Mabuza, said: “I am proposing that we put up a power station there, extract this coal and turn it into gas, which is more climate change friendly, and generate electricity as a source of development.” The Aurecon Group found that the low-grade seam has become commercially attractive for power generation applications.

Project Details

• Sponsor: IPSA Group
• Parent company:
• Location: Indwe, South Africa
• Coordinates: -31.466, 27.333 (approximate)
• Status: Cancelled
• Gross Capacity: 250 MW
• Type: Subcritical
• Projected in service:
• Coal Type: Bituminous
• Coal Source:
• Source of financing:

Articles and resources

Related GEM.wiki articles

• South Africa and coal