Eskom on Friday unveiled the names of the successful bidders for the supply of battery storage solutions under its “flagship” battery energy storage system (Bess) project.
The state-owned utility said it has appointed Hyosung Heavy Industries and Pinggao Group to design, supply, install, operate and maintain the battery systems for a period of five years.
“This is the first part of the 500MW Bess initiative announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa as part of government’s measures to address South Africa’s long-running energy crisis,” the company said in a statement.
“The Eskom Bess project will act as a proof of concept on the delivery of the first battery energy storage project in South Africa. The project supports transformational aspects by demonstrating large-scale deployment in support of South Africa’s renewable energy strategy and addresses local overall system challenges.”
Eskom said the system should help alleviate pressure on the national grid, especially during peak demand times, for at least four hours a day and for at least 250 days a year. “It will also be used secondarily for ancillary services and local network support.”
The battery system will be charged during off-peak permits or “when network conditions permit”. The project will use large-scale utility batteries and will be implemented in two phases:
- The first phase includes the installation of about 199MW of additional capacity. With four hours of storage, this equates to 833MWh storage at eight Eskom distribution substations. This phase will also see the installation of about 2MW of solar PV.
- The second phase includes the installation of 144MW of capacity, equivalent to 616MWh at four Eskom distribution sites and one transmission site. Some 58MW of solar PV will also be installed in this phase.
Phase 1 sites will be commissioned by June 2023 and phase 2 sites by December 2024
“To maximise benefits, the distributed battery storage sites and strategically situation at remote areas with limited access to our distribution networks but close to renewable independent power producers’ plants,” Eskom explained in the statement. — (c) 2022 NewsCentral Media
The sites for phase 1 (source: Eskom):
| Name | Distribution OU | MW 0utput | MWh capacity | PV capacity |
| Skaapvlei | WC | 80 | 320 | 0 |
| Melkhout | EC | 35 | 140 | 0 |
| Elandskop | KZN | 8 | 32 | 0 |
| Pongola | KZN | 40 | 160 | 0 |
| Hex | WC | 20 | 100 | 0 |
| Graafwater | WC | 5 | 30 | 0 |
| Paleisheuwel | WC | 9.5 | 45 | 0 |
| Rietfontein | NC | 1.54 | 6.16 | 2.04 |
| Total phase 1 | 199.04 | 833.16 | 2.04 |
The sites for phase 2 (source: Eskom):
| Project name | Distribution OU | MW output | MWh capacity | PV capacity |
| Witzenberg | WC | 17 | 68 | 0 |
| Ashton | WC | 17 | 68 | 0 |
| Cuprum | NC | 70 | 280 | 0 |
| Kiwano | NC | 40 | 200 | 58MW |
| Total phase 2 | 144 | 616 | 58MW |