South Africa’s Kuthu solar thermal plant has connected to the grid

The Kuthu Solar Park CSP Plant, located in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, has successfully connected to the grid.

SENER, the Spanish engineering and technology firm, and subsidiary of Spanish conglomerate, ACCIONA Industrial, were responsible for connecting the generator.

The 100MW Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plant has connected with the 132kV ESKOM Distribution line.

The plant is now capable of supplying 179,000 South African homes with power, according to the South African Department of Energy DOE.

The facility also features a molten salt storage system that will allow for operations in darker hours, due to storing 4.5 hours of thermal energy.

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“With this key milestone for the Kathu project, we reassure our commitment to tackling the South Africa’s need for a reliable and sustained energy supply and the improvement of the grid stability, and therefore, we have focused on deploying our patented Concentrated Solar Power to support clean energy generation,” commented Siyabonga Mbanjwa, Regional Managing Director of Southern Africa at SENER.

“This project milestone has only been achieved in time and with high quality standards thanks to the Joint Venture's ability to develop this project in the South African market,” reported ACCIONA Industrial’s Chief Operating Officer, Roberto Felipe.

“We have focused on working with local entities and communities in the region, which is why we are executing Concentrated Solar Power Kathu with excellence.”