juwi wins a new contract in South Africa. Its local subsidiary has taken over the operation and maintenance of the De Aar 1 solar power plant, which has been in operation since 2014. The plant is located 500 km north of the coastal city of Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. The plant was developed, financed and built by Solar Capital, under the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP).
With a capacity of 85 MWp, De Aar 1 is one of the largest operational solar plants in South Africa, covering an area of 282 hectares. “Our goal is to operate De Aar 1 with the highest reliability and energy efficiency for the national grid. It is an honour for us to be entrusted with this important solar site,” says Christos Charalampidis, juwi’s O&M manager for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region.
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The Wörrstadt, Germany-based company already has a portfolio of 400 MW of renewable energy under management in South Africa. In addition to the operation and maintenance of renewable energy plants, the company also builds facilities. In Egypt, for example, the company is building a 36 MWp solar power plant to supply the Sukari gold mine in the Red Sea governorate.
This open-pit and underground mine is operated by Centamin, a company based in Jersey, an autonomous dependency of the British Crown. In South Africa, the company also won an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for a 9 MWp solar photovoltaic plant at the Evander gold mines. This mining site is operated by Pan African Resources.
Jean Marie Takouleu