H.E. Gwede Mantashe, South Africa’s Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, said last week that the Ministry will announce the preferred bidders for the acquisition of 2,600MW under the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement’s (REIPPP) bid window 5 by the end of October 2021.

According to the Minister: “The Department is in the process of procuring a further 6,800MW of renewable energy of which 2,600MW falls under bid window 5,” adding that the remaining 4,200MW is planned for procurement before the end of March 2022.

The predicted outcomes of bid window 5, which opened in March 2021, are likely to boost renewable energy development across the country, increasing energy security and supply in the face of persistent electrical issues.

South Africa plans to enhance renewable energy development with 14,00MW of additional wind power, 6,000MW of additional solar power, and 2,088MW of battery storage under the REIPPP programme and the Integrated Resource Plan 2019. The department has bought a total of 6,422MW, of which 5,422MW has been connected to the national grid.