Name of the Project
Sasol and Air Liquide large-scale renewable-energy procurement programme.

Location
Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Free State, with electricity wheeled through the national grid to Sasol's Secunda operations, in Mpumalanga. Enel Green Power RSA's Impofu East, Impofu West and Impofu North wind projects are near Oyster Bay, in the Eastern Cape. TotalEnergies Renewables South Africa and Mulilo Energy Holdings' De Aar 2 South wind farm and Paarde Valley solar PV project are in the Northern Cape. Mainstream Renewable Power's Damlaagte PV facility and SOLA Group's Naos-1 hybrid solar and battery project are in the 
Free State.

Project Owner/s
Sasol and Air Liquide are the joint corporate offtakers and programme sponsors. The generation projects are being developed, owned and/or operated by the respective independent power producer (IPP) counterparties, namely Enel Green Power RSA and the Perpetua Holdings consortium, TotalEnergies Renewables South Africa and Mulilo Energy Holdings, Mainstream Renewable Power and SOLA Group.

Project Description
Sasol and Air Liquide announced in April 2021 that they would jointly procure 900 MW of renewable-energy capacity from IPPs by 2031, with 500 MW allocated to Sasol and 400 MW to Air Liquide. The electricity is intended to help reduce the carbon intensity of operations at Secunda, one of South Africa's largest industrial sites and a significant source of industrial demand for electricity.

The first package was announced in January 2023, when Air Liquide and Sasol signed two long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Enel Green Power RSA for 220 MW of wind power. Enel subsequently signed a third PPA with the companies in February 2024 for an additional 110 MW. The three Enel PPAs account for 330 MW of renewable-energy capacity from the Impofu East, Impofu West and Impofu North wind farms, with power wheeled to Secunda.

In February 2023, Air Liquide and Sasol signed two PPAs with TotalEnergies Renewables South Africa and its partner Mulilo Energy Holdings for 260 MW of renewable energy. The package comprises the 140 MW De Aar 2 South wind farm and the 120 MW Paarde Valley solar PV project, both structured as local majority-owned projects.

A further PPA was signed with Mainstream Renewable Power in November 2023 for the 97.5 MW Damlaagte solar PV facility, also to supply renewable electricity to Secunda through wheeling. The project has since entered commercial operation.

The latest and largest package is SOLA Group's Naos-1 project, which comprises a 300 MW, or 435 MWp, solar PV facility with 660 MWh of battery energy storage. It is described by SOLA as South Africa's first utility-scale hybrid solar PV and battery energy storage project purpose-built for wheeling to private end-users across the grid. The battery component differentiates the project from the earlier wind and solar PPAs by adding storage to the programme.
In all, the programme has secured about 988 MW, rounded to about 990 MW, thereby exceeding the original 900 MW target.

Potential Job Creation
An aggregate job-creation figure for the full programme has not been stated. 

Capital Expenditure
Total programme capital expenditure has not been stated. Mulilo has stated that the combined capital cost of the De Aar 2 South and Paarde Valley projects is about R7.5-billion.

Planned Start/End Date
The renewable-energy procurement programme was announced in April 2021, with the initial 900 MW target set for 2031. Enel's projects include wind capacity scheduled to come online in 2025 and 2026. Mainstream's Damlaagte PV facility achieved commercial operation on August 23, 2025, and was officially inaugurated on October 27, 2025. TotalEnergies and Mulilo reached financial close on the De Aar 2 South and Paarde Valley projects in November 2024. Naos-1's commercial operation date is targeted for 2028.

Latest Developments
In February 2026 SOLA Group reached financial close and started construction on Naos-1. 

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Enel Green Power RSA and the Perpetua Holdings (Impofu wind projects); TotalEnergies Renewables South Africa and Mulilo Energy Holdings (De Aar 2 South wind farm and Paarde Valley solar PV projects); Mainstream Renewable Power (Damlaagte PV facility); and SOLA Group (Naos-1 hybrid solar and battery project).

Contact Details for Project Information
Sasol, email renewable.energy@sasol.com.
Air Liquide, email za-renewable@airliquide.com.