- Karpowership will connect 450MW to the Eskom grid within a year.
- The project will not require cutting trees or installing underground pipes, hence no relocation of communities.
The Karpowership company has announced plans to connect 450 megawatts to the Eskom grid through Richards Bay on the North Coast of KwaZulu-Natal. There is an expected development to increase the Umhlathuze Local Municipality’s chances of attaining metro status. The company’s chief commercial officer, Zeynep Harezi Yilmaz, disclosed this in a telephone interview with Daily News editor Ayanda Mdluli.
Yilmaz said the firm will connect 450MW to the Eskom grid within a year, adding that by the end of next year, Eskom can receive 450MW from the company ship in Richards Bay. The company was recently granted authorisation to participate in the Environmental Impact Assessment by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, which the company described as a critical milestone.
The firm added that the decision was further justification that its powership exceeded international and South African environmental standards. Yilmaz said their ships were to supply power, and there would be no need to cut trees or install pipes in the ground, which would cause the relocation of communities. She said their ships would be stationary and affect marine life less than commercial ships that went in and out of the port daily.
“Karpowership will reduce emissions 50% more than coal, so we are moving from coal to renewable energy with 450MW added to the grid. Eskom will power 250,000 to 300,000 households, and with the 1,200MW we have been awarded to connect to the grid, we will reduce load shedding by a full stage. In the coming weeks, we expect the government to grant us an environmental impact assessment authorisation for Coega and Saldanha Bay,” said Yilmaz.