Voltalia has entered into a corporate power purchase agreement (CPPA) with a subsidiary of Rio Tinto for 148MW of solar output in South Africa.
The electricity will be generated by Voltalia’s Bolobedu site, a 148MW solar farm to be built in the Limpopo province of north eastern South Africa.
Voltalia will develop, build and operate the plant and production is expected to begin in 2024.
The agreement was signed following a process launched in 2021 by Richards Bay Minerals (RBM), South Africa’s largest producer of mineral sands and a subsidiary of the Anglo-Australian metals and mining group.
The 20-year contract will provide approximately 300 gigawatt hours of renewable energy each year through a wheeling agreement and RBM’s generation facilities in KwaZulu-Natal.
The CPPA means that RBM will benefit from more reliable access to electricity in the long term while reducing its annual greenhouse gas emissions (scope 1 and 2) by at least 10%.
As part of its mission, Voltalia will ensure that the Bolobedu solar project has a positive impact on the environment and surrounding communities by creating local employment opportunities.
A total workforce of more than 700 people is expected during construction, and then about 50 people once the plant is operational.
In order to support the growing value chain of south Africa’s renewable energy sector, Voltalia will also aim to source goods and services locally.
Sébastien Clerc, Chief Executive Officer of Voltalia, said: “We are very pleased to support RBM in the decarbonisation of its industrial activities in South Africa.
“The Bolobedu photovoltaic power plant will be our largest project in Africa, having completed the construction of a series of other solar power plants for ouraccount or for third-party customers on the continent (Zimbabwe, Burundi, Tanzania, Kenya, Mauritania and Egypt).
“This project is the first in our South African portfolio of solar and wind power plants under development, in areas where grid connection is available, and which will be ready to help our customers overcome the current energy crisis with affordable, clean and stable electricity.”