A photo of the Longyuan Mulilo De Aar Wind Power Project. Mulilo has also reached financial close on a 337MW Middlepunt Solar PV project in the Free State near Welkom
Image: Supplied
Mulilo, the renewable energy company, has reached financial close on the 337 MW Middlepunt Solar PV project in the Free State near Welkom, marking the first project under REIPPPP Bid Window 7 to achieve this milestone.
Once operational, the project is expected to generate approximately 770 GWh of clean electricity annually and will connect to the Everest Main Transmission Substation (MTS), enabling efficient integration into South Africa’s national grid.
This will result in the avoidance of 813,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually and will provide enough energy to power about 325,000 households.
"Financial close of the Middlepunt project marks a major achievement for South Africa’s renewable energy programme under Bid Window 7. Reaching this milestone required immense effort and collaboration from a wide range of stakeholders," said Mulilo CEO Jan Fourie.
The electricity supplied to the South African grid would be priced at R458/MWh. “This is a significant step forward for the country, making the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy highly cost-effective. It ranks among the most affordable green energy available anywhere in the world,” said Fourie in a statement.
A 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) had been concluded with the National Transmission Company of South Africa (NTCSA), strengthening the role of transmission reform and market evolution in unlocking new generation capacity.
The successful close of the Middlepunt Solar project further contributed to Mulilo’s ambition of delivering 1 GW of new generation capacity per year and formed part of its growing portfolio across wind, solar and battery energy storage technologies.
The project was made possible through close collaboration between the public and private sectors, including key stakeholders such as the Department of Electricity and Energy, the Independent Power Producer Office (IPPO), NTCSA, and Eskom.
The project also benefited from the expertise of financial and legal advisors, including Standard Bank, Absa, Nedbank, PepperTree Capital, Bowmans, Fasken, and DKVG, as well as technical advisory support from Arup and insurance advisory from Marsh.
The backing of Mulilo’s shareholders, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Norfund, alongside co-sponsors Reatile Group and Perpetua as BEE partners, and a local community trust, also underscored Mulilo’s commitment to inclusive participation and long-term shared value creation in the Matjhabeng Local Municipality, said Fourie.
Mulilo is a leading South African renewable energy developer and independent power producer, specialising in wind, solar, and battery storage projects. It has a development pipeline exceeding 30 GW and has solar and wind power projects in the northern Cape. Also in November 2024, the company reached financial close on three battery energy storage system projects for the Department of Mineral Resources’ inaugural battery energy storage system independent power producer procurement programme.
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