Eskom is seeking a service provider to drive the Komati Power Station socio-economic development plan to assist with the transition from fossil to renewable energy.

Part of the plan includes the management and implementation of mitigation measures for the socio-economic impacts resulting from the shutdown of the fossil-fired generating units at Eskom’s Komati Power Station.

The last of the fossil-fired units at Komati reached its end of operational life in October 2022 and was shut down.

The repowering and repurposing of the power station will be funded through a concessional loan facility from the World Bank.

Komati Power Station has received a $497 million repurposing boost after the World Bank Group board of directors approved the windfall to repurpose Komati from a coal-fired power plant into a renewable and battery-powered plant.

The loan facility broadly covers the decommissioning, repurposing and repowering of the station and critical elements of the Just Energy Transition to provide a second life to the power station.

Under the Komati project, the workers will be supported through a comprehensive transition plan, elaborated jointly with inputs from staff and unions. Options for the affected workers will include transfers to other Eskom facilities, reskilling, and upskilling for deployment to renewable energy plants.

The Komati Just Energy Transition Project is financed jointly through a $439.5 million World Bank loan, a $47.5 million concessional loan from the Canadian Clean Energy and Forest Climate Facility, and a $10 million grant from the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program.

This includes the establishment of an agrivoltaic test facility, a containerised microgrid assembly and manufacturing facility, a training centre for employees and community members, and importantly, a community upliftment programme that this tender seeks to address.

The repurposing of the plant will enhance energy security in South Africa with the installation of a combination of 220MW of renewable energy solutions (including 150MW solar, PV solar and 70MW wind) and 150MW batteries, which together will help to improve the quality of electricity supply and grid stability.

Eskom already partnered with the SA Renewable Energy Tech Centre and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet to develop the training facility.

The project is for approximately 60 months.

Interested service providers are urged to review the request for Expression of Interest (EOI) document on the Eskom Tender Bulletin.