By: Energy capital & power

South African state power utility Eskom has brought the sixth and final unit of the Kusile Power Station online. The unit will undergo testing and optimization over the next six months, following which the unit will add 800MW to the country’s national grid.

Once all Kusile units are in commercial operation – expected in H2, 2025, the station will contribute 4,800 MW to the grid. Representing the country’s largest infrastructure project, the station aligns with goals to introduce 2,500 MW of new generating capacity to the national grid by March 2025.

“Kusile Unit 6’s addition is proof that we are making continued progress in stabilizing and strengthening South Africa’s electricity supply. Meeting the targets that we set in the Generation Recovery Plan and our strategic roadmap underscores our determination to deliver new capacity, enhance generation performance, support economic growth and ultimately deliver a more sustainable energy future,” stated Dan Marokane, Group Chief Executive, Eskom.

Medupi – a second new-build power station – will bring its fourth unit online in April 2025, following a period of outage due to generator failure. Both projects will support power supply in South Africa as Eskom strives to boost generating capacity through its Generation Recovery Plan. The plan aims to address the country’s energy availability factor challenges and improve the reliability of power stations.

“Eskom is at a critical point returning megawatts to the grid as we are currently in a constrained state. As we celebrate this progress, our focus is now on ensuring that unit six achieves commercial operation in the second half of 2025, further strengthening South Africa’s energy security,” added Bheki Nxumalo, Group Executive for Generation, Eskom.