Skip to content
Energy News Network Industry news Gas South Africa is “not retreating” from gas-to-power after its first round awards nothing
Gas, Tech & Power Generation

South Africa is “not retreating” from gas-to-power after its first round awards nothing

28th October, 2026

South Africa has concluded the first bid window of its gas-to-power programme without appointing a preferred bidder, after none of four bids offering 2,830MW met the mandatory criteria, and Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says the lessons will shape the next round, with details promised before the end of the year.

South Africa will keep pursuing gas-to-power, Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said on 28 October, as his department confirmed that the first bid window of the Gas Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (GASIPPPP) had ended with no preferred bidders appointed and no generation capacity awarded.

“South Africa is not retreating from our gas-to-power objectives,” Ramokgopa said in a statement issued after a media briefing set for this morning in Pretoria was postponed. “Our responsibility now is to address the infrastructure, commercial and institutional conditions required to translate market interest into viable and deliverable projects.”

None of the four bidders could provide assurances of gas supply to the level the request for proposals required, the department said, citing this as one of the main reasons none satisfied the mandatory functional criteria, in a country that imports most of its gas from Mozambique and has no LNG receiving terminal.

The round sought 2,000MW of generation in line with the 2019 and 2025 Integrated Resource Plans, and when it closed on 29 May the department received four bids offering a total of 2,830MW, under a revised request for proposals issued on 20 October 2025 after consultation with the market.

As the first procurement of its kind in South Africa, the round had shown how far procurement requirements depend on fuel supply and enabling infrastructure, the department said, and it set out the aim of strengthening those conditions for what it calls Bid Window 1.5.

Any further round will need the necessary approvals before its requirements and timelines are set, and the department said it would share more information before the end of the year. Gas-to-power already sits inside the 9,600MW of new capacity Ramokgopa determined on 7 October under the 2025 plan, which allocates 5,000MW to gas and 4,600MW to battery storage.

Images: Engineering News

Back to news
Author
Charlotte Lamb
Previous post
KCB LPG financing: a smokeless kitchen for 2,300 learners in Siaya
Next post
EXCLUSIVE: Four-fifths of Ignite’s mini-grid power goes to work

Latest news

Tech & Power Generation

South Africa puts 4,600MW of batteries and 5,000MW of gas first in its next procurement

Minister of Electricity and Energy Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has confirmed the proposed approach to the first section 34 determination under the IRP 2025, prioritising 4,600MW of battery storage and 5,000MW of gas-to-power. Wind and solar wait for a later determination, as the ministry sets out to cut curtailment before adding variable generation.
News

South Africa gas procurement approaches the decision its LNG market depends on

Four bids totalling around 2,800MW were submitted against a 2,000MW target when the window closed on 29 May. IPP Office head Precious Edward has said the programme remains on the timeline communicated to the market, which put preferred bidders roughly three months after close.
Tech & Power Generation

South Africa dispatchable solar starts flowing as Hydra pairs 216MW with a 500MWh battery

The Northen Cape facility near De Ar entered operation this month under the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme, contracted to deliver 75MW between 5am and 9.30pm daily. TotalEnergies and Reatile Renewables hold the equity, with more than 400GWh a year committed to Eskom over 20 years.
Tech & Power Generation

Eskom coal decommissioning decision on five stations due by end of September

Camden, Grootvlei, Hendrina, Arnot and Kriel hold emissions exemptions to 31 March 2030. Eskom will say by the end of September whether they shut, repower or run on, and chief executive Dan Marokane has said the answer turns on new capacity being contractually secured. The Energy Council of South Africa leads the work on what follows 2030.
Renewable Energy

Eskom Green seeks partners for up to 6GW of renewables and storage

Eskom has opened a request for qualification to find co-development and co-investment partners for up to 6GW of renewable generation and battery storage, the first phase of its new utility-scale renewables business. Eskom Green, being incorporated as a wholly owned subsidiary, will contribute at least 2GW of solar and 1GW of batteries.
Thought Leadership

One market, two clocks: what South Africa’s trading rules are actually deciding

NERSA extended the comment window on the third version of the South African Wholesale Electricity Market rules to 28 August after stakeholders asked for more time. Eskom's court challenge to five trading licences is stayed rather than withdrawn, which makes the drafting a negotiation as much as a consultation.
Tech & Power Generation

Two wind farms outweigh 122 solar projects in South Africa’s latest registrations

NERSA registered 124 generation facilities between April and June, carrying 804MW and R20.18 billion of investment. Two wind facilities account for 568MW of that. The remaining 122 are solar and produce 236MW between them, most of them small and spread across municipal networks.
Tech & Power Generation

Azura Power buys into Enpower with ‘significant long-term ambitions for South Africa’

Azura Power, which runs 752MW of generation across three African markets, has taken a majority stake in Enpower Trading, its first investment in South Africa. Enpower holds a NERSA trading licence and has provided wheeling services in George since 2022 and in Cape Town since 2024.