Red Rocket reaches fin close for 242-MW phase of South Africa wind farm

South African independent power producer (IPP) Red Rocket has achieved financial close on the first phase of the Overberg Wind Farm in South Africa which will see the installation of 242 MW of clean power capacity part of which has been contracted by a unit of mining giant Rio Tinto Ltd (ASX:RIO).

The Rietkloof Wind Farm in South Africa. Image source: Red Rocket.

The two-phase initiative, with an overall export capacity of 380 MW, is located near Swellendam in the Western Cape. The first phase will accommodate 39 Goldwind turbines of 6.2 MW each for a combined nameplate capacity of 242 MW.

The plant is expected to reach commercial operations in early 2027. Once fully operational, the Overberg Wind Farm is expected to be South Africa's largest privately developed single wind farm.

The project has been financed by Absa Bank, Standard Bank and the Development Bank of Southern Africa.

The Overberg project has a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) in place with Rio Tinto's subsidiary Richards Bay Minerals (RBM) for a 230 MW portion of the plant. The contract guarantees an estimated supply of 750 GWh of clean electricity annually. The deal will reduce RBM’s annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by around 30%, equivalent to 700,000 million tonnes of CO2e.

"This is our largest PPA to date, and we are excited to be a part of this groundbreaking project and look forward to the positive impact it will have on the environment and the community," said RBM's managing director Werner Duvenhage.

-----The news is quoted from RenewablesNow by Martina Markosyan (https://renewablesnow.com)

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