Majuba power station

Part of the Global Coal Plant Tracker, a Global Energy Monitor project.

Download full dataset

Report an error

Related coal trackers:

Global Coal Mine Tracker Global Coal Terminals Tracker Global Coal Project Finance Tracker

Majuba power station is an operating power station of at least 4143-megawatts (MW) in Amersfoort, Gert Sibande, Mpumalanga, South Africa.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Majuba power station	Amersfoort, Gert Sibande, Mpumalanga, South Africa	-27.10061, 29.770963 (exact)

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

Loading map...

{"type":"HYBRID","minzoom":false,"maxzoom":false,"types":["ROADMAP","SATELLITE","HYBRID","TERRAIN"],"mappingservice":"googlemaps3","width":"600px","height":"500px","centre":false,"title":"","label":"","icon":"","lines":[],"polygons":[],"circles":[],"rectangles":[],"copycoords":false,"static":false,"visitedicon":"","wmsoverlay":false,"zoom":16,"layers":[],"controls":["pan","zoom","type","scale","streetview","rotate"],"zoomstyle":"DEFAULT","typestyle":"DEFAULT","autoinfowindows":false,"resizable":false,"kmlrezoom":false,"poi":true,"cluster":false,"clustergridsize":60,"clustermaxzoom":20,"clusterzoomonclick":true,"clusteraveragecenter":true,"clusterminsize":2,"imageoverlays":[],"kml":[],"gkml":[],"searchmarkers":"","fullscreen":false,"scrollwheelzoom":false,"locations":[{"text":"","title":"","link":"","lat":-27.10061,"lon":29.770963,"icon":""}]}

Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3, Unit 4, Unit 5, Unit 6: -27.10061, 29.770963

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	Start year	Retired year
Unit 1	operating	coal: bituminous	665	subcritical	1996	2046 (planned)
Unit 2	operating	coal: bituminous	665	subcritical	1997	2047 (planned)
Unit 3	operating	coal: bituminous	665	subcritical	1998	2048 (planned)
Unit 4	operating	coal: bituminous	716	subcritical	1999	2049 (planned)
Unit 5	operating	coal: bituminous	716	subcritical	2000	2050 (planned)
Unit 6	operating	coal: bituminous	716	subcritical	2001	2051 (planned)

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner	Parent
Unit 1	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100%]	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100.0%]
Unit 2	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100%]	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100.0%]
Unit 3	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100%]	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100.0%]
Unit 4	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100%]	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100.0%]
Unit 5	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100%]	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100.0%]
Unit 6	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100%]	Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd [100.0%]

Background

The Majuba Power Station is a coal-fired station owned by the South African publicly-owned electricity utility Eskom.

The power station has an installed capacity of 4,110 megawatts (MW): 3 X 665 MW dry-cooled units and 3 X 716 MW wet-cooled units. It is located in Volksrust, Mpumalanga.

Construction of the first unit of the power station began in September 1983, and the unit was commissioned in April 1996. The last unit was commissioned in April 2001.

Eskom's website stated that in 2001, the capacity of the plant was rated as being 3,843 MW.

In October 2021, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment partially granted environmental compliance postponement for the power station. Majuba was also named as one of the highest-emitting stations.

According to South Africa's 2019 Integrated Resource Plan, the plant's 50-year Life Decommissioning is projected for 2046-2050. In April 2020, Eskom listed the last unit's retirement as 2051.

The South African grid faced major loadshedding power outage problems through 2021/22. The Majuba plant was a power station described by Eskom as "usually reliable" compared to some of the other troubled facilities, but the plant struggled with managerial and logistical challenges in February 2022 when the rainy season took several units offline.

In February 2023, South Africa's grid was faced with Stage 6 load shedding, massively restricting power supplies "until further notice". Breakdowns occurred at five coal-fired power stations: Arnot power station, Camden power station, Hendrina power station, Lethabo power station and Majuba power station. The breakdowns meant Eskom had 21,243 MW of unplanned outages at its plants, with a further 3,566 MW unavailable due to scheduled maintenance. Conditions were expected to worsen through the end of the month.

Incidents

In November 2022, rocks were delivered to the power station instead of coal. This was following a series of other sabotage, corruption and loadshedding issues plaguing the Eskom grid. According to an article from December 2022, the government had deployed members of the South African National Defence Force to Camden, Majuba, Grootvlei, and Tutuka power stations in response to theft and vandalism at the plants.

In September 2023, a coal truck driver and two weighbridge clerks were arrested for alleged theft of coal and fraud at Majuba power station.

November 2014 Coal silo collapse

At 12:30 pm on Saturday November 1, 2014 Eskom maintenance workers noticed cracks appearing in a central coal storage silo and coal leaking out. Workers were evacuated from the site and at 1:12 pm the silo collapsed. (A video of the cracks in the silo opening up and spilling coal just before the collapse can be viewed here).

In its initial media release Eskom misleadingly stated that the silo had "cracked this afternoon" and had caused "damage to the central coal storage silo." It also stated that the damage had resulted in the "the loss of 1 800 MW" of capacity. As a result of the sudden drop in system capacity, Eskom announced that the following day it would commence "rotational load shedding."

At full capacity the plants six units burn 56,000 tonnes of coal per day, supplied via a central conveyor system from the coal stockyard. The central conveyor then splits with three smaller capacity coal conveyers each supplying coal to a pair of the generating units. As the coal silo which collapsed was the central one and took with it sections of all three arms of the conveyor system, the impact on the plant was immediate. According to Eskom immediately after the silo collapse the power output of the plant was cut from 3600 MW to 1200 MW and then later 600 MW.

To keep the plant running, Eskom moved to install mobile coal feeders to enable coal from a fleet of trucks to be used to supply five of the six generating units at a reduced level. In a media briefing Eskom stated that it aimed to operate the power station at half its installed capacity. In an initial briefing Eskom stated that the "cause and cost" of the silo collapse have yet to be determined. (Reuters reported that a fleet of thirty trucks would be required to supply sufficient coal to keep four units going; the other two units would not be able to operate until the rubble from the collapsed silo could be removed, with Eskom estimated could take two weeks.)

At the media briefing the day after the collapse Eskom stated that "the latest civil visual inspection [of the silo] was conducted in September 2013 by an external specialist, in line with best practice" and that "the concrete structure was found to be in good condition" and that "some moderate cases of external physical damage that was reported has since been repaired."

Impact on Eskom's ability to meet demand

In its media presentation Eskom stated that the sudden cutback in output from the plant imposed additional constraints on the system as during summer the utility has maintenance scheduled and "can't be deferred." Eskom stated:

"Unlike winter, where the demand increases significantly during the evening peak (5pm-9pm), the demand profile during summer is much flatter with an increased demand profile throughout the day. This is because of a relatively high percentage of almost constant industrial load and the impact of air conditioning in the commercial and marginally in the residential sector during the day. The significant residential component over evening peak is not as evident in summer. If there is a constraint, the system is constrained all day."

To make up the shortfall in the short-term, Eskom increased generation from its hydro scheme, but noted on Sunday that by Wednesday it would start to run out of water reserves. As a result it argued that restrictions on load would be necessary to conserve water. It also noted that solar and wind were of limited use in meeting evening peak loads.

Eskom noted that as a result of the accident "it is very likely that load shedding will continue for the week."

By the Monday Eskom were a little more optimistic, stating that no load shedding would be required on Monday or Tuesday as staff had been able to connect mobile feeder units and increase the capacity of the Majuba Power station to 1200 MW instead of just 600 MW. However, they forecast that "the system will be under extreme pressure on Wednesday and Thursday as the water reserves that we built up over the weekend for our peaking plants will be depleted."

Criticisms of Eskom

The trade union Solidarity claimed that Eskom had been aware of the structural problems with the silo since January but had failed to adequately address the problems with it.

The union's head of industry, Deon Reyneke estimated that it could take up to three months to repair the silo or construct a permanent workaround. He also stated that Eskom workers had been monitoring resonances at the silo since January and that, as a result of increased vibration, the silo was showing signs of deterioration. Reyneke said that in June and again three weeks prior to the collapse that the vibrations had worsened. "The vibration caused or worsened weaknesses in the silo and as the vibration increased, it eventually led to the collapse,” Reyneke said.

One mining engineer, Kevin Gallagher, said that in his 40 years in the mining industry he had never heard of a silo collapsing. "I just think it's a lack of maintenance and no one doing proper housekeeping and inspection on equipment," he said.

In an editorial, Business Day wrote that:

"Added to the problem are the financial constraints at Eskom, which means overtime pay is in short supply, so maintenance work takes longer than it should and units are offline for longer than SA can afford. It has meant too that the tariffs originally granted by the National Energy Regulator of SA did not adequately cover the costs of energy reserves such as running the gas turbines or paying large customers to shut down.

Increasingly, SA is stuck in a vicious cycle of electricity system constraints which is doing huge damage to the economy and to investment. It is not just that large industrial users are constantly having to shut down but that confidence in Eskom’s ability to provide the power reliably is so weak that it is deterring investment."

Times Live also editorialised against Eskom in a column titled "Eskom holding back economic growth and job creation". The editorial stated:

"The national grid was already buckling last week, with Eskom warning that its generation capacity had been reduced by about a quarter, mostly as a result of unplanned outages. Because many of our power stations are long in the tooth but are being forced to run at full capacity to meet demand, power cuts to allow for maintenance, and unplanned outages, are likely to be increasingly common.

With the deadline for the coming on line of the 4800MW Medupi power station becoming something of a moving target - it now seems that the first of its six generators will be plugged into the national grid by April next year, followed by the others at nine-month intervals - load-shedding is likely to be part of our national life until at least 2019.

The tragedy is that, with such power constraints, our economic-growth target of 5% a year - essential for the creation of significant numbers of jobs and reduction of inequality - is unlikely to be achieved."

Arrest of journalist

The opposition Democratic Alliance criticised Eskom for arresting a Netwerk24 journalist, Le Roux Schoeman, who was photographing the collapsed silo. Schoeman was arrested under the apartheid era law, the National Key Point Act, on the grounds that the power station was a "national key point."

IOLnews reported that "a man called Bheki asked Schoeman to get into an Eskom car and took him to an office on the premises. He made a photocopy of Schoeman's press card and wanted to see what was on his camera, claiming the power station was a national key point. He wanted to call an IT expert to make sure photos and videos had been deleted from the camera. Schoeman asked for legal advice and refused to hand anything to Bheki."

Coal ash waste

In December 2021, the project to extend the continuous ash disposal facility (ADF) at the power station passed its midway point. The project is expected to ensure that waste residue from the boiler furnaces is stored.

Environmental impact

According to a March 2024 report on air pollution in Africa by Greenpeace, Majuba power station was among Africa's ten largest point sources of nitrogen oxide (NOx) pollution from May 2018 to November 2021. Eight other Eskom coal plants were included in the top ten NOx emissions hotspots in Africa for that period. Majuba power station was also among the top ten sulfur dioxide (SO2) emitters in Africa in 2022, along with five other Eskom coal plants. The report noted that government data on emissions in Africa is patchy, so the authors relied on satellite measurements.

Eskom’s Majuba Rail project

In August 2020, the Daily Maverick published an Op-Ed on the devastating impact Eskom’s Majuba Rail project has had on Eskom, the built environment, and ultimately the economy.

Fourteen million tonnes of coal per annum (14 Mtpa) are required to fuel the Majuba power station. Initially, coal for the plant was supposed to come from a new tied-colliery built and operated by the Rand Mines company. However, the Majuba Colliery had to be decommissioned and a branch rail link was built from Palmford on the Natal Corridor (Natcor) general freight line to Majuba power station to transport coal. Then, following policy changes in 2003 and 2004, Eskom contracted with new coal sources to supply coal to Majuba, even though the new locations made it impossible to move coal via the existing Palmford line. In other words, coal deliveries by rail started to be supplemented and displaced by delivery of coal by road. Around the year 2000, the need was identified to build a 68 km rail line from Ermelo to Majuba to transport coal.

The original business case for the 68 km Majuba rail project was authorized in December 2004 with an initial board-approved cost-to-completion of R1.5 billion. The current estimated cost has since ballooned to R5.9 billion, plus R2.1 billion in capitalized interest during construction. The project was expected to be completed by the end of March 2021. Later reports cite December 2021 as the commercial operation target.

In 2022, individuals living in the area reported organized, violent theft along the railway between Ermelo and the Majuba power station. According to eye witness accounts, groups of 50-60 people could be seen along the tracks at a time stealing copper cables. One family said that their vehicle was shot at by the thieves when driving by the railway on a parallel service road.

Eskom's 2022 Integrated Report stated that delays caused by "infrastructure vandalism" had caused the commercial operation date of the project to be postponed to March 2024.

Renewable IPPs leased on Coal Site

In October 2022, Eskom signed lease agreements with four independent power producers (IPPs) for the development of renewable energy projects covering 6,184 hectares of land near its Majuba and Tutuka power stations. Following feasibility studies, the land was expected to provide up to 2000 MW of wind, solar and battery projects. The projects could be commissioned within three years. In addition, similar scoping was underway near the Kendal and Kusile power stations in Mpumalanga and the Ingagane power station in KwaZulu-Natal. Eskom planned to issue new tenders four times per year to continue accelerating renewable energy generation and boost South Africa's grid capacity in light of the major, ongoing load shedding problem.

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.