Kusile Power Station (previously known as Project Bravo) in South Africa is a coal-fired power plant by state electricity utility Eskom in Mpumalanga. The station consists of 6 generating units with an eventual nameplate capacity of 800 MW each bringing the total installed capacity of 4,800 MW; as of 2023, only 5 units are in operation.
Kusile Power Station is designed to consist of six 800 megawatt coal-fired generating units for a total generating capacity of 4,800 megawatts.[1] In 2023 the realistic sustainable output per unit was however projected to be some 350 megawatt.[2]
As of December 2023, Unit 5 was synchronized to the national grid. Following a six-month period of "testing and optimization", the unit's output will be commercially commissioned and bring total station output to 4,000 MW. Kusile would be the first coal power station in Eskom's fleet to be fitted with flue gas desulphurization technology.[3]
Project engineer
Black and Veatch was appointed as the project engineer for construction.
The power utility, Eskom stated that it "will obtain most of the coal required for this Power Station from Anglo Coal's New Largo operations, south east of the Kusile Power Station."[4]
Eskom's consultants estimate that 35 new coal mines will be required to support the Medupi and Kusile plants.[5]
Construction timeline
Construction started in August 2008, months after the first of South Africa's rolling blackouts in January 2008.[6]
Initially expected to take 6 years to complete, the project completed Unit 1 until 2017 (approximately 8 years after initial works began) and the entire project not until 2021.[7]
5 June 2007: Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism issued a positive Record of Decision.[8]
February 2008: Hitachi Power Africa awarded the boiler contract worth R18.5 billion.[9]
February 2008: Alstom S&E awarded the turbine island works contract valued at R13 billion.[9]
14 April 2011: Black & Veatch Corp. Awarded approval for $805.6 million in financing from the U.S. Export-Import Bank.[10][11]
October 2014: 300 ton 910 MVA Generator Step-up Transformer placed on its foundation, assembled with all its Auxiliary systems and filled with 128,000 litres of Mineral Oil. All electrical integrity tests were performed successfully to confirm that the transformer was ready to receive power.
10 March 2017: Unit 1 achieves commercial power.[12]
7 July 2017: Unit 2 was synchronised to the national grid.
16 March 2019: Unit 3 was synchronised to the national grid.[13]
30 October 2020: Unit 2 reaches commercial operation.[14]
31 March 2021: Unit 3 reaches commercial operation.[15]
23 December 2021: Unit 4 connected to the national grid.[16][17]
31 May 2022: Unit 4 reaches commercial operation.[18]
31 December 2023: Unit 5 connected to the national grid.[3]
Delays and defects
Deficient project management, corruption, labour disputes, vandalism and absenteeism resulted in low operational efficiency and reliability which periodically stalled the generation of electricity 15 years after its construction began.[2]
The dates for full commercial operation were shifted numerous times mostly due to:
Labour disputes:
May 2011: Eleven contractor vehicles, seven offices, two large mobile cranes, and the west wing of the KCW office block were set alight, vehicles stoned, and offices and stores looted.[19]
February 2014: 1,400 employees were reported absent.[20]
10 August 2018: A fire breaks out at the station amidst tensions with unions over pay increases causing damage.[21]
Technical issues such as:
Boiler design: high temperatures that the spray water-cooling system could not cope with[22]
Fabric filter plant: excessive wear of bags, resulting in blockages[22]
Coal mills: failed to meet operational requirements, which necessitated a doubling of servicing[22]
Flue ducts and resultant damage to chimney: A wet flue gas desulphurisation system between the boiler and chimney, intended to remove harmful sulphur dioxide from emissions at its first desulphurisation stage, where non functioning baghouse filters supposed to capture fly ash from emitted gases failed. This resulted in some of the silica containing fly ash being carried along to the desulphurisation unit. At that stage, hydrated lime sprayed through the emitted gasses to chemically bind with the sulphur dioxide and create calcium sulfite was also mixed with the fly ash and subsequently entered the chimney. When combined with heat and fly ash, a hard crust formed along the inner exhausts of the chimney which over time added too much weight for the structure to support, resulting in damage. The damage to the flue duct and chimney then rendered Units 1, 2 & 3 inoperable.[23][24][25]
This resulted in Kusile and Medupi considered as some of the worst-performing units in Eskom's fleet.[22] In February 2019, Eskom GM for group technology Titus Mathe reported R8 billion would be needed to fix design defects at Medupi and Kusile.[26]
Critics
The building of this power station attracted various criticism.
Interference
Hitachi Power Africa, a subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., found by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to have made US$6 million in corrupt payments to Chancellor House, a front company for the African National Congress, the ruling political party in South Africa.[27] Hitachi agreed to pay US$19 million to settle charges.[27] Hitachi Power Africa rebranded as Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Africa in February 2014.[28]
Cost
Kusile Power Station is estimated to cost R118 billion to complete.[7] This will bring the cost per unit to R19.66bn ($1.34bn) per generating unit, equalling R26.96M ($1.67M) per installed MW.
Financial institution support
The following institutions were involved in supporting the project:[29]
The plant is expected to emit est 36.8 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent per year once completed.[30]
In November 2011, Greenpeace activists chained themselves to a gate and climbed a crane, a few weeks before the country hosted a global conference on climate change. Authorities arrested nine people, on charges of trespassing and malicious damage to property.[31]
The design of the station does allow for the installation of flue gas desulphurization technology, the first of its kind in South Africa.
Inquiry
By 2018, the governments Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan announced a forensic probe into delays and cost overruns on the completion of Kusile and Medupi Control Stations.[32]
Corruption controversy
In November 2019 South African investigative journalist Pieter-Louis Myburgh published an article in the Daily Maverick detailing an alleged slush fund corruption scandal involving Eskom executives and at least four contractors.[33] The scandal involved contracts worth a combined R10 billion resulting in an estimated R75 million being lost due to irregular activities.[33] By the time of the publication of Myburgh's article the construction of Kusile was five years past its original completion date and an estimated R80 billion (equivalent to US$5.4 billion) over budget.[33]
In Dec 2022, ABB was charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in a bribery scheme, where it paid more than $37 million in bribes to a high-ranking Eskom official to influence a $160 million contract awarded by the state-owned electric utility company for work on Kusile's cabling and installation work between 2014 and 2017.[34]
