One fatality during Medupi project

”In the course of operations, we suffered one fatality, that of William Masilela who died while working on the project,” said Eskom acting CEO Brian Molefe.

President Jacob Zuma officially unveiled the coal-fired unit six at a ceremony on the site.

Molefe said a promise made to the nation eight years ago to deliver power had been realised.

”In August 2007, government embarked on an audacious infrastructure project, and a promise to the nation was made… eight years later, the promise was fulfilled. 

The addition of unit six brings [the country’s total power capacity to] 45,000 MW,” he said.

Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown said the legacy of Medupi would be felt by South Africans for many years.

”Medupi’s legacy will be with us for a long time; lessons will be taken from Medupi and applied to Kusile power station [in Mpumalanga],” she said.

Unit six is expected to add at least 800 MW to the struggling national power grid. The unit, the first of the coal-powered plant’s six units to be completed, was synchronised with the national grid in March this year, and has been undergoing tests.

Medupi was scheduled to be fully online four years ago, but construction has been delayed by labour unrest, leading to spiraling costs running into billions of rand.

Also present at the launch were Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi, Economic Development Minister Ibrahim Patel, Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson, Eskom board chairman Ben Ngubane, and other Eskom executives.

Zuma was expected to deliver the main address at the event.

ANA