R25 Billion Wind Farm Launched in Mpumalanga to Power Seriti’s Coal Mines and Fight Loadshedding

• Seriti Green has begun their first phase, the 155MW Ummbila Emoyeni facility
• Construction of this farm has begun, and its competition date is set for mid-2026
• The power generated will power 75% of the Seriti’s coal mines in the area

MPUMALANGA - This will be the biggest wind farm in South Africa and the first in the province of Mpumalanga, according to Mike Tete and Peter Vonn.

The black-owned coal mining group Seriti Resources is behind the greater 900MW project. The 900MW will consist of 750MW of wind and 150MW of solar generation.

Mike Tete, the group CEO’s Community Commitment, said:

“It’s imperative that whilst we make this journey, we take along with us the communities within which we operate, we take along the strategy of this country to make sure that we are energy independent, that we have security of energy and it’s affordable and it’s accessible to everybody.”

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Environmental benefits of Ummbila Emoyeni wind farm

The Ummbila Emoyeni project is located between Bethal and Morgenzon in Mpumalanga. The new farm will help offset and reduce the area’s carbon footprint and bring alternative energy to the area, speeding up the move towards green energy.

Economic benefits of windfarming

This quickly expanding industry will hopefully see jobs created by these wind farms. That is the view of the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA), as published by BusinessTech:

“The wind industry requires a blend of technical, policy, legal and environmental expertise across the full value chain. We are seeing an increasing need for professionals in monitoring and control systems, AI-based maintenance and data analysis.”

The Ummbila Emoyeni facility will power 75% of the Seriti coal mine and an estimated half a million households in the area.

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Eskom still far from maintaining a steady power supply

Briefly News reported that an independent economic and energy analyst stated that a stable power supply was observed in March and April 2024. This was due to a significant number of electricity users leaving the Eskom grid.

Tshepo Kgadima mentioned that although the pressure on the grid has lessened, the power utility still faces considerable challenges before achieving a consistent electricity supply.

Source: Briefly News