Richards Bay Gas to Power Plant 2
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Richards Bay Gas to Power Plant 2 is a power station in pre-construction in Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is also known as RB2, Richard’s Bay Gas to Power (RBG2P).
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Richards Bay Gas to Power Plant 2 | Richards Bay, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa | -28.781321, 32.015209 (exact)[1] |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- 1: -28.781321, 32.015209
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pre-construction[2] | fossil gas: LNG, fossil liquids: liquefied petroleum gas[3] | 400[3] | gas turbine[3] | not found | 2026 (planned)[3] |
CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richards Bay Gas Power 2 Pty Ltd [100%][3] | Phakwe Group Pty Ltd [100.0%] |
Background
Richards Bay Gas to Power Plant 2 (RB2) is a 400 MW gas-fired power plant. Initially, it was proposed to generate three-quarters of the total generation capacity from natural gas turbines and one-quarter with steam turbines.[4]
It is one of the six gas-to-power plants proposed in the Richard’s Bay Area. Other plants include: Karpowership Richards Bay power station (450 MW), Nseleni Independent Floating power station-NFIPP (2800 MW), Phinda Power Plant (450 MW), Richards Bay Gas to Power Plant 3 (2000 MW), and Richards Bay (Eskom) power station (3000 MW).
The Environmental Authorization was granted in October 2016. In September 2020, an application for amendments to the Environmental Authorization was filed to change the plant technology to use only gas turbines.[5]
Opposition
Richards Bay Gas Power 2 (Pty) (RB2) Ltd received an Environmental Authorisation (EA) for the 400 MW Gas to Power Facility located on a site within the Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone in the KwaZulu-Natal Province on 4 October 2016, with the condition that the activity commences within five years, thus expiring in October 2021. The project was then dormant for years.[5]
Due to a delay in construction activities they had to make an application for an amendment of the environmental authorisation to extend the validity of the given EA for an additional 5 years in 2020. In September 2020, Savannah Environmental applied for amendments to the EA issued in October 2016.[5]
On the 31 March 2021 authorities re-issued the EA.
Environmental justice groups groundWork and South Durban Community Environmental Alliance (SDCEA), represented by the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER), approached the Pretoria High Court on 20 April 2022 to challenge the reissued environmental authorisation granted to Richards Bay Gas to Power 2 (RB2). [6] The High Court application was dismissed due to a technicality and leave to appeal was refused. The civil society grouping approached the SCA for leave to appeal the cost order and RB2 said they would not pursue costs if the appeal was to be withdrawn. The civil society group withdrew their appeal and RB2 withdrew their cost order. The RB2 plant now has a valid EA, as a result of the HC judgement.
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ https://www.google.com/maps/place/Richards+Bay+Industrial+Development+Zone+(RBIDZ)/@-28.7823743,32.0152307,16z/data=!4m12!1m6!3m5!1s0x0:0x885df7125166d1ee!2sRichards+Bay+Industrial+Development+Zone+(RBIDZ)!8m2!3d-28.7811331!4d32.0153165!3m4!1s0x0:0x885df7125166d1ee!8m2!3d-28.7811331!4d32.0153165.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20220923050853/https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-05-12-richards-bay-floating-gas-power-plant-faces-turbulent-legal-waters/. Archived from the original on 23 September 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20221102141912/https://sahris.sahra.org.za/sites/default/files/additionaldocs/03-RBGP2-final-DRAFT-Motivation-Report-16.09.2020.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 02 November 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "Proposed Gas to Power Plant on a Site within the Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone" (PDF).
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Motivation for amendment of the Environmental Authorisation" (PDF).
{{cite web}}: line feed character in|title=at position 46 (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "APPROVAL CHALLENGE: Richards Bay floating gas power plant faces turbulent legal waters". Daily Maverick. May 11, 2022. Archived from the original on July 5, 2022. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of gas-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
