Johannesburg - Unit five of the new Medupi power station near Lephalale in Limpopo was was synchronised to the national power grid on Thursday, becoming the second of the power station's six units to come on stream, Eskom said.
The synchronisation of unit five also marked a key milestone towards the full commercial operation of the unit ahead of its scheduled commercial operation in March 2018, Eskom said in a statement.
Synchronisation is when the generator in the unit is connected into the power grid so that it is aligned with all other generators on the national grid. It then starts to generate and deliver electricity into the grid over several months.
“Medupi unit five synchronisation is a clear indication that we are on track on delivering the entire new build programme to the country. This milestone further strengthens our position that load shedding is becoming a thing of the past. I am thrilled by this achievement. Eskom has turned the corner,” Eskom CEO Brian Molefe said.
Eskom chairman Ben Ngubane said: “This achievement of Medupi unit five synchronisation is proof that Eskom is in good hands under the leadership of Brian Molefe and his executive team. We commend the team for their dedication and commitment in working tirelessly to ensure that unit five synchronisation is achieved ahead of schedule. This is a remarkable achievement.”
Once completed, Medupi would be the fourth largest coal-fired power plant, and the largest dry-cooled power station in the world. It would consist of six units with an installed capacity of 4800MW. The planned operational life of the power station was 50 years, Eskom said.
The Medupi power station used direct dry-cooling systems due to the water scarcity in the Lephalale area. Dry-cooling systems used air instead of water to cool the steam exiting a turbine. The power plant incorporated super critical technology which was able to operate at higher temperatures than Eskom's earlier generation of boilers and turbines.
Importantly, the technology enabled the power plant to operate with greater efficiency, resulting in better use of natural resources such as water and coal, and would have improved environmental performance, Eskom said.
African News Agency