Scatec ASA and Mulilo have secured preferred bidder status in South Africa’s battery energy storage independent power producers procurement programme (BESIPPPP) bid window 3 hosted by the department of mineral resources and energy, which offered 616 MW of BESS capacity in this round.
Mulilo secured four projects totalling 493 MW/1,972 MWh, while Scatec won a 123 MW/492 MWh contract for the Haru BESS project. Mulilo’s awarded BESS projects include Erfdeel (123 MW/492 MWh), Retreat (123 MW/492 MWh), Bloemhoek (124 MW/496 MWh), and Vanilla (123 MW/492 MWh). The projects will be backed by 15-year power purchase agreements with South African utility, Eskom. Scatec’s Haru BESS, also under a 15-year contract, will provide dispatchable storage services to the National Transmission Company of South Africa. With a total estimated cost of ZAR2.2 billion, Scatec’s project will be 90 per cent debt-financed, and the company will retain a majority equity stake while delivering full engineering, procurement, and construction.