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.
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 | -28.78132, 32.01521 (exact)[1] |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1: -28.78132, 32.01521
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | pre-construction[2] | liquefied natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas[3] | 400[3] | gas turbine[3] | not found | 2026[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 |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | Richards Bay Gas Power 2 (Pty) Ltd[3] | Phakwe Group [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
In October 2016, the RB2 plant received an Environmental Authorization (EA) for a closed cycle gas turbine, with the condition that the activity commences within five years, thus expiring in October 2021. The project was then dormant for years.[5]
In September 2020, Savannah Environmental applied for amendments to the EA issued in October 2016.[5]
The amendments include the following:
(i) Extend the EA report by five more years
(ii) Update the plant to 100% gas turbines
(iii) Remove the two steam turbines
(iv) Remove diesel as a fuel resource
In May 2022, the Center for Environmental Rights (CER) approached the Pretoria High Court to challenge the reissued authorization stating, "The latest challenge calls on the government to take into account scientific evidence of greenhouse gas emissions released during the lifecycle of gas as a fossil fuel, and to recognize the serious potential climate change impacts of the RB2 project." [6]
They also called for an “assessment of all impacts related to the proposed changes in the amendment application, advantages, and disadvantages associated with the proposed change, and measures to ensure avoidance, management, and mitigation of impacts associated with such proposed change to be included in a report.” [6]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ https://www.google.com/maps/place/Richards+Bay+Industrial+Development+Zone+(RBIDZ)/@-28.782374332.015230716z/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/20240125020607/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 25 January 2024.
{{cite web}}: 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) Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name ":0" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name ":0" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 6.0 6.1 "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.
