- Three solar plants of 30 MW capacity are to be constructed.
- Plants to power group’s mining operations.
Harmony Gold Mining Co Ltd, a South African company, has revealed the securitisation of debt funding to construct three solar plants totalling 30 MW to power its mining operations.
The three projects, all having a capacity of 10 MW each, form part of a larger plan that also encompasses a plan to construct an additional 137 MW of renewable plants at the company’s longer-life mines. The construction of the three solar parks is the first phase of the company’s renewable energy programme.
The photovoltaic (PV) plants are to be built in the Free State province of South Africa and are expected to produce more than 68 GWh of electricity for the local operations of Harmony. The mining group will receive power under a power purchase agreement.
Harmony and BBEnergy, a South African engineering firm and clean energy project investor Energy Group, were joint developers of the project. The plans are expected to be ready for commissioning by March 2023.
Rand Merchant Bank, a division of FirtRand Bank, granted the debt financing to Harmony to support the projects’ implementation. Equity funding was provided by Mahlako Energy Fund and private equity fund manager African Infrastructure Investment Managers (AIMM), which separately said it had bought majority stakes in all the projects.