Seven international companies that submitted bids to participate in South Africa’s Independent Transmission Procurement (ITP) project have been pre-qualified, Minister of Electricity and Energy Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has revealed.
The companies, drawn from China, the Middle East, India, Portugal and France, were selected from a total of 17 firms that responded to the request for proposals.
South Africa is seeking to expand its electricity transmission network through public-private sector investment as part of efforts to increase power access to households and industrial enclaves.
Currently, more than 1.6 million South Africans lack access to electricity.
Under the programme, the country plans to construct about 14,000 kilometres of power transmission lines through a public-private partnership framework.
The project is estimated to cost R440 billion over a 10-year period.
Dr Ramokgopa expressed optimism that local companies would qualify in subsequent phases of the procurement process.
“We are happy to announce that of the 17 that responded, we have seven that are successful. It’s the Portuguese, the Indians, the Chinese and the French that are participating in this. All the pre-qualified bidders are international companies,” he said.
The minister attributed the outcome to the stringent requirements of the request for proposals, noting that South African firms could still succeed in future bidding rounds.
In a related development, Dr Ramokgopa also announced that four preferred bidders under Bid Window 7 of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) have been appointed to deliver a combined 890 megawatts (MW) of solar photovoltaic capacity.
He further disclosed that the Department of Energy is expected to announce a credit guarantee vehicle in March next year to safeguard private sector investors.
Discover more from Energy News Africa
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.