Kelvin power station

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Kelvin power station is an operating power station of at least 420-megawatts (MW) in Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, South Africa with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Kelvin power station	Kempton Park, Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, South Africa	-26.115776, 28.194019 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• 1, Phase A Unit 1, Phase A Unit 2, Phase A Unit 3, Phase A Unit 4, Phase A Unit 5, Phase A Unit 6, Phase B Unit 10, Phase B Unit 11, Phase B Unit 12, Phase B Unit 13, Phase B Unit 7, Phase B Unit 8, Phase B Unit 9: -26.115776, 28.194019

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	CHP	Start year	Retired year
1	Announced	fossil gas: LNG	600	combined cycle	not found	–	–
Phase A Unit 1	Retired	coal: bituminous	30	subcritical	–	1957	2022
Phase A Unit 2	Retired	coal: bituminous	30	subcritical	–	1957	2022
Phase A Unit 3	Retired	coal: bituminous	30	subcritical	–	1958	2022
Phase A Unit 4	Retired	coal: bituminous	30	subcritical	–	1959	2022
Phase A Unit 5	Retired	coal: bituminous	30	subcritical	–	1960	2022
Phase A Unit 6	Retired	coal: bituminous	30	subcritical	–	1960	2022
Phase B Unit 10	Operating	coal: bituminous	60	subcritical	–	1968	2026 (planned)
Phase B Unit 11	Operating	coal: bituminous	60	subcritical	–	1968	2026 (planned)
Phase B Unit 12	Operating	coal: bituminous	60	subcritical	–	1969	2026 (planned)
Phase B Unit 13	Operating	coal: bituminous	60	subcritical	–	1969	2026 (planned)
Phase B Unit 7	Operating	coal: bituminous	60	subcritical	–	1962	2026 (planned)
Phase B Unit 8	Operating	coal: bituminous	60	subcritical	–	1964	2026 (planned)
Phase B Unit 9	Operating	coal: bituminous	60	subcritical	–	1965	2026 (planned)

CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner	Parent
1	Harith General Partners [100%]	Coega Development Corp [100.0%]
Phase A Unit 1	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase A Unit 2	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase A Unit 3	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase A Unit 4	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase A Unit 5	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase A Unit 6	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase B Unit 10	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase B Unit 11	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase B Unit 12	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase B Unit 13	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase B Unit 7	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase B Unit 8	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds
Phase B Unit 9	Anergi International Ltd [100%]	Pan-African Infrastructure Development Funds

Background on coal plant

Kelvin power station is a 13-unit coal-fired power plant with a total capacity of 600 MW. The plant was completed between 1957 and 1969.

The power station formed a crucial part of the City of Johannesburg metropolitan municipality’s power supply and historically supplied between 10% and 14% of the city’s electricity requirements.

As of December 2014, the plant was operating at around 200 MW. At the time, it was controlled by Nedbank Capital and Investec Bank, who invited bids on the power station. The plant had a PPA with the City of Johannesburg through 2021, but the bidder could use the site to build a new plant, as it was already connected to the Eskom grid.

In 2018, the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) funded a study by Novo Energy Ltd to convert the plant to a gas-fired power station.

In South Africa's Integrated Resource Plan (IRP 2019), the power station was planned for retirement by December 2026.

In 2020, City Power Johannesburg was in negotiation with the power station’s management to extend its 20-year power purchase agreement which was coming to an end in November 2021.

In October 2021, City Power Johannesburg said it would stop cutting power to its customers as directed by Eskom as it had secured "additional power supply capacity" from the Kelvin power station. But after Eskom warned that the utility's plans could put the national grid in jeopardy, City Power quickly backed down.

In April 2022, the mayor of Johannesburg announced that amid rising costs from municipally-owned Eskom, the city would be extending their power purchase agreement with the Kelvin IPP until 2024.

In August 2022, the city was working to again extend the supply contract, this time until 2026. Noting that extending the life of the coal plant was not a long-term solution, the city was requesting proposals for alternative energy projects, including solar.

Aging Kelvin-A

As of December 2021, Kelvin "A" Station was possibly in a long-term outage.

A November 2022 document stated that the six units commissioned between 1957 and 1960 had been on standby since 2012. The document, titled "Draft Basic Assessment Report for the Decommissioning and Demolition of the Kelvin Power A-Station Power Plant Infrastructure", stated that an environmental assessment was evaluating future development at the site.

Ownership

The power station was originally owned by the City of Johannesburg. In 2001, the power station was privatized and sold to AES. In 2003, AES sold it to Globeleq.

In 2007, a consortium led by infrastructure funds managed by the Macquarie Group, Old Mutual Investment Group, and Kagiso Trust Investments announced that the consortium completed the acquisition of a 95% interest in the power station. The consortium included Aldwych Kelvin Holdings, a subsidiary of Aldwych International, the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO), and J&J Infrastructure Holdings. It was supplementing the incumbent shareholder Global African Power and increased the "empowerment shareholding" in Kelvin to over 20%. An Aldwych subsidiary would operate the plant under a long-term operations and maintenance agreement.

In 2013, Nedbank Limited and Investec Bank Limited acquired the equity in Kelvin.

In 2015, the power station was bought by an Aldwych-led consortium. Aldwych, like NOVO Energy, was also a Harith General Partners investment.

In May 2021, it was announced that Aldwych International had changed its name to Anergi International Ltd.

In May 2024, the power station's owner was sold to a new investor, Harith InfraCo.

Carbon Capture and Utilization pilot project

In March 2024, a carbon capture and utilization (CCU) pilot project was launched at Kelvin power station under the leadership of South Africa's Department of Science & Innovation. The CoalCO₂-X project was reportedly designed to remove carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur oxides to make diesel and fertilizer salts.

Background on gas plant

In 2021, Harith General Partners (parent to Novo Energy Ltd) announced plans to build two gas-fired power plants at the Kelvin site of up to 700 MW.

Further feasibility studies concluded that a CCGT Power Plant with a net output of approximately 600MW comprising one H class gas turbine, a heat recovery boiler and a steam turbine, would be the optimum technology for this site.

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datasets, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.