South Africa’s heavy engineering group, DCD is to build wind turbine towers at Port Elizabeth in Eastern Cape Province. The facility, due for completion in January, will produce around 110 tubular steel, 120-metre towers a year in the first instance. DCD is currently finalising contracts with its first two customers, Vestas and Nordex.
At the same time, Indian-turbine manufacturer Suzlon said it is at an “advanced” stage with its plans to build a tower factory in South Africa. No more details are available.
These initiatives have been created as a result of the local content requirement in South Africa’s renewable energy independent power producer procurement programme (REIPPP).
South Africa’s first wind farm was built outside Darling, up the coast from Cape Town. A modest affair, its turbines sit on a hill, looking towards the ocean. At peak capacity, they generate 5,2MW, enough to power 700 houses. At just 50m, they are still the tallest objects along the coastline. But the new generation of turbines will be double and triple their size.
Nicolas Rowland, a director of the Darling farm, said it had faced great hurdles as it was built before government approved the building of wind farms.
“This is a very competitive environment, where economies of scale play a defining scale,” he said. The small size of the Darling plant, therefore, meant it was more of a demonstration model of the technology. Darling has benefited the wind industry in various ways. By giving the public and other stakeholders an up-close view of the turbines in operation, it has alleviated many of the insecurities and concerns that lobby groups have wrongfully advertised.”
Each SA wind farm has to undergo an environmental impact assessment, when locals have a chance to raise their concerns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the biggest concern has been about the turbines looking out of place in nature. A proposal to build turbines outside Grahamstown was delayed by game farmers who said they looked unnatural and would affect tourism.
However things are looking up. Rowand said
“There is great confidence in the industry, thanks to a process recognised worldwide for being a solid platform to develop a flourishing industry in the country, if not on the continent.”
The Darling development came just prior to South Africa committing to reducing its carbon emissions by 34% by 2020 at the Copenhagen climate change conference four years ago.
Port Elizabeth will be home to many of the wind farms and therefore the towers will be made in close proximity to where they will be sited. One of these, the Red Cap Kouga wind farm, will have 32 turbines generating 80MW by next year. The community owns just over a quarter of the farm through a community trust: A good way to win over local people and allow them to have a stake in renewable energy.
