New Planet Energy, in partnership with Span Africa, has delivered a pioneering integrated solar-and-steel infrastructure project for Thuso Mills & Feeds, marking a significant advancement in renewable-energy solutions for the agricultural sector.
Financed through New Planet’s fully funded power purchase agreement (PPA) model, the 1.1MW system exceeded its energy generation targets in its first month of operation, underscoring the effectiveness of the company’s engineering and development approach.
The project was unveiled during a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Thuso Mills leadership team, New Planet Energy and Span Africa. Speaking at the event, John Bandey, CEO of New Planet Energy, said the project represents a milestone in expanding clean energy access across South Africa.
“Today is a beautiful day filled with many sun hours producing many hours of clean-energy savings for Thuso Milling, enabling you to live a new way,” Bandey said. “Our mission at New Planet is to empower millions of people to live a new way through sustainable solutions for a new, thriving planet.”
In its first full month, the solar system generated more than 110% of its guaranteed production target, resulting in approximately R95 000 in savings for Thuso Mills. First-year savings are forecast at R1-million, with lifetime savings expected to exceed R25-million over the 20-year PPA period.
Bandey added: “Throughout its lifespan, this system will produce 50GWh of clean power, reducing 50 000t of CO₂ emissions, equivalent to planting 2.5 million trees or removing 11 000 fossil fuel vehicles from our roads.”
Innovation in agriculture
The project features one of South Africa’s first large-scale solar-ready agricultural steel structures, developed through the partnership between New Planet Energy and Span Africa. The solution delivers dual functionality by providing both agricultural storage space and a structurally optimised platform for solar generation, reducing construction footprints and improving economic value for clients.
Bandey emphasised New Planet’s values in delivering the system: “Two of New Planet’s key values are honesty and being industry leaders and thus sticking to our promise. The solar-ready steel structure delivered with Span Africa is one of the first of its kind in the country. This innovation is proudly South African and helps the agricultural sector thrive by delivering dual-purpose functionality.”
A unified approach
A key factor in the project’s success is the strong partnership between Span Africa and New Planet Energy. Their combined expertise – Span Africa’s leadership in agricultural steel structures and New Planet’s excellence in renewable energy engineering and fully funded solar PPA solutions – created a future-ready system uniquely designed for agricultural operations.
“This partnership is built on shared values and complementary strengths,” said Max Heinzelmann, CEO of Span Africa.
Span Africa’s structural engineering capability and New Planet’s energy engineering and funding model formed a seamless, integrated solution. The solar-ready steel structure and PPA model provide clients with a single, unified project: one design process, one construction team and one long-term operational partner. This alignment creates reliability, efficiency and performance well above forecast – outcomes clearly demonstrated at Thuso Mills.
Max further noted that the system performed above forecast, delivering 111% and 105% output across the two installations, attributing this to strong engineering integration, optimised structure design and seamless execution between both teams.
Arnold Steyn, CEO of Thuso Mills, praised the project for its execution, leadership and future potential.
“We have had a few capital projects along the way at Thuso, but this was one of the best projects that has ever been implemented on this premises,” Steyn said. “The way you led us into certain decisions, we really appreciate that, John.”
Steyn described the experience from initial discussions to implementation as a turning point for the business.
“We started a long time ago, and it took us some time to get to a decision, but once we made that decision and saw the implementation, and today, standing here at the end of the rollout, it has been a really nice experience for us,” he said.
Scalable system built for energy independence
New Planet and Thuso Mills are already assessing phase 2, which will integrate battery energy storage to enable energy arbitrage, grid feed-in options, generator fuel savings and greater independence.
Bandey explained: “Our strategy is to take our clients on a green energy journey, ultimately becoming independent from Eskom or local municipalities, creating long-term predictable energy security and savings.”
To date, New Planet Energy has deployed more than 200 commercial and industrial solar systems, totalling 100MW of installed capacity. These systems have generated over 1TWh of clean electricity, avoiding one million tons of CO₂ emissions, equivalent to planting 40 million trees or removing one million fossil fuel vehicles from South African roads.
About New Planet Energy
New Planet Energy is more than a solar company. It represents a lifestyle, a mindset and a growing movement, one that invites businesses and communities to live a new way. This new way embraces energy independence instead of relying on unstable systems, prioritises cleaner and smarter solutions that deliver long-term value and real, measurable savings and reflects a shared belief in building a thriving, sustainable planet for generations to come.
Driven by engineering excellence, an innovative fully funded PPA model, and long-term partnerships with organisations like Span Africa and Thuso Mills, New Planet empowers businesses across South Africa to operate in a future-focused way: reliable, resilient, cost-effective, and ready for what comes next.
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