Scatec sells stake in South African and Rwandan solar plants – pv magazine International

August 2, 2024 Patrick Jowett

Norwegian company Scatec is set to sell part of its stake in three solar power plants in South Africa. It has also completed the sale of its entire stake in an 8.5 MW plant in Rwanda.

In South Africa, the agreement with Greenstreet 1 Proprietary limited sees Scatec reduce its stake in the Kalkbult power station from 46% to 13% and its stake in the Linde and Dreunberg solar power plants from 44% to 12%, for a total of ZAR921 million (US$50 million).

All three plants were commissioned in 2014, have a combined capacity of 190 MW and are covered by 20-year PPAs with South African utility Eskom.

Greenstreet 1 Proprietary limited is a subsidiary of Stanlib Infrastructure Fund II, managed by Stanlib, the second largest asset manager in South Africa and part of Standard Bank Group Limited.

Scatec has confirmed that it remains committed to investing in South Africa for the long term and intends to continue providing operations, maintenance and asset management services to the three facilities.

Terje Pliskog, CEO of Scatec, said the deal reflects the company’s strategy to recycle capital into new investments. “South Africa will continue to be a key growth market for us and we will continue to build scale through new investments,” he said.

The transaction will be completed in a two-stage process. The first phase is expected to close in the second half of 2024 and the second in the first half of 2025.

Meanwhile, in Rwanda, investors Fortis Green Fund I Rwanda Holdings Ltd and Axian Energy Green Ltd acquired Scatec’s 54% stake in the facility, which began operations in 2014, for $1.38 million.

Scatec also confirmed its withdrawal from the power plant’s operation, maintenance and asset management contracts and officially ceased all operations in Rwanda.

“We continue to execute our strategy of consolidating our portfolio by selling assets in non-core markets and recycling capital into new investments in renewable energy,” explained Pliskog. “We are confident that the new owners will take good care of the solar plant and continue to provide clean, renewable energy to the Republic of Rwanda for many years to come.”

Scatec specializes in the development of renewable energy sources in emerging economies. Earlier this year, Pilskog spoke to pv magazine on current projects in South Africa, Botswana and Egypt.

According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, 25 MW of solar power was installed in Rwanda at the end of 2023, the same amount as in the past five years. In February, the European Union concluded a raw materials supply agreement with Rwanda, which should support the development of solar energy in the country.

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