{"id":45339,"date":"2024-02-29T14:52:31","date_gmt":"2024-02-29T12:52:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/"},"modified":"2025-03-13T15:29:52","modified_gmt":"2025-03-13T13:29:52","slug":"impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/","title":{"rendered":"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light"},"content":{"rendered":"

The\u00a0construction of the three 110-megawatt (MW) Impofu wind farms in Kouga will begin in March. This will be the largest pure private renewable energy plant in South Africa. <\/p>\n

At a length of 116 kilometres, the project also boasts the longest privately-permitted power line, developed for any renewable energy project in the country. Following over a decade of planning and stakeholder engagement, the wind farms are scheduled to be operational in 2025. <\/p>\n

\u201cSince 2013 we have signed up to 87 separate parcels of land for the power line, and spent years negotiating with farmers to lease land on which to build wind turbines. In total, the wind farm\u2019s 57 turbines will extend across 12 pieces of land, with significant benefits for landowners and local agricultural output,\u201d said Jadon Schmidt, Business Development manager at Red Cap Energy, and project manager of the Impofu Project. <\/p>\n

Red Cap, a renewable energy developer, worked closely with landowners to plot the position of each wind turbine, managing expectations, and leveraging local in-depth knowledge of the landscape.<\/p>\n

\n
\"windfarm\"<\/p>\n
Chairperson of the Reebok Rant Worker\u2019s Trust, Xolile Peter Lamani. <\/div>\n
<\/span>Photo: Supplied<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThe whole process has been pretty smooth. I had a good idea of where I did not want roadways to go, to make sure I did not end up with unusable pieces of land. Besides that, I made suggestions about where it would and would not work to put up the turbines. For example, if an area was too wet or difficult to access,\u201d said Vernon Basson, owner of Vergaderingskraal, who has leased land to the Impofu Project.<\/p>\n

The turbines will be constructed with locally-made concrete towers. Once complete, the development will supply 330MW of renewable energy to Sasol South Africa\u2019s Secunda site, where French-based industrial gas supplier, Air Liquide, operates the largest oxygen production site globally. <\/p>\n

In partnership with multi-national renewable energy corporation, Enel Green Power, the R9 billion project was subject to an extensive environmental impact assessment and public engagement process.<\/p>\n

Red Cap faced several challenges during development, including the discovery of a Marshall Eagle nest in the area, a year-and-a-half into the impact assessment process. Collaborating with local environmental organisations, the placement of certain turbines had to be reviewed to ensure the protection of the endangered bird. The power line was also re-routed and redesigned on numerous occasions, to accommodate objections from a small portion of landowners. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe relationships we have established with everyone involved have been critical to the success of the project and overcoming obstacles. We are so grateful to the landowners, who had to be incredibly patient and flexible during the planning process,\u201d said Schmidt.<\/p>\n

\n
\"windfarm\"<\/p>\n
Vernon Basson, owner of Vergaderingskraal, who has leased land to the Impofu Project. <\/div>\n
<\/span>Photo: Supplied<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThen there\u2019s the host of environmental specialists, who helped us to ensure that we have made the best decisions for all animals and people who depend on the land.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe extra income from the turbines is going to help us keep our livestock healthy and deal with drought during the summer. We are going to use this opportunity to grow and expand our farming interests,\u201d said Xolile Peter Lamani, chairperson of the Reebok Rant Worker\u2019s Trust, who also owns a dairy farm near Oyster Bay that has leased land for the wind farm.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The construction of the three 110-megawatt (MW) Impofu wind farms in Kouga will begin in March. This will be the largest pure private renewable energy plant in South Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":45345,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":"","_yoast_wpseo_content_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_inclusive_language_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_is_cornerstone":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_crsspst_to_novanewscoza":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozabloemnewsexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozacityvision":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozadistrictmailhelderberg":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaeikestadnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozahermanustimes":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozakomani-karoo":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozamthathaexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozanoordkaapbulletin":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapaarlpost":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapeexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapeoplespost":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaswartlandgazette":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozatygerburger":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaudexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozavistanews":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozavrystaatkroon":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweskusnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweslander":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaworcesterstandard":false,"_EventAllDay":"","_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":"","_EventShowMapLink":"","_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":"","_EventVenueID":"","_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":"","_VenueShowMapLink":"","_application":"","_batch_id":"","_company_name":"","_company_tagline":"","_company_twitter":"","_company_video":"","_company_website":"","_custom_id":"8c61e5e7-f1fd-4709-abc4-9324a55969eb","_EventDuration":"","_EventOrigin":"","_EventTimezoneAbbr":"","_featured":"","_filled":"","_job_expires":"","_job_location":"","_media_credit":"","_media_credit_url":"","_menu_item_menu_item_parent":"","_menu_item_object":"","_menu_item_object_id":"","_menu_item_target":"","_menu_item_type":"","_menu_item_url":"","_menu_item_xfn":"","_navis_media_can_distribute":"","_navis_media_credit_org":"","_OrganizerOrigin":"","_provider":"","_pum_built_in":"","_pum_default_theme":"","_pum_form_conversion_count":"","_remote_id":"","_remote_name":"","_remote_position":"","_report_frequency":"","_report_reference_dates":"","_send_attempts":"","_site_id":"","_sitemap_exclude":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","_sitemap_priority":"","_source_url":"","_subscription_period":"","_subscription_period_interval":"","_subscription_price":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":"","_template_type":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_ticket_start_date":"","_tribe_aggregator_allow_multiple_organizers":"","_tribe_aggregator_content_type":"","_tribe_aggregator_file":"","_tribe_aggregator_finalized":"","_tribe_aggregator_hash":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_id":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_interactive":"","_tribe_aggregator_origin":"","_tribe_aggregator_post_status":"","_tribe_aggregator_preview":"","_tribe_aggregator_source_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_type":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_hide_attendees_list":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":"","_tribe_ticket_version":"","_type":"","_VenueOrigin":"","_wp_attachment_context":"","_wp_attachment_image_alt":"","_wp_font_face_file":"","_wp_old_date":"","_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw_text_input":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_block-catalog":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_job_listing_type":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_nova_retailer":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_publication":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_tribe_events_cat":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-duration":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-rating":"","_menu_item_classes":[],"_tribe_modified_fields":[],"_wp_attachment_backup_sizes":[],"_wp_suggested_privacy_policy_content":[],"_yoast_post_redirect_info":[],"_yoast_wpseo_video_meta":[],"activation_date":"","archive_insertion_is_repeating":"","archive_insertion_posts_count":"","article_feature_media":"","article_feature_type":"","article_main_image_caption":"","article_media_icon":"","article_template":"","author_byline":"","background_color":"","block_editor":"","byline":"","cmplz_hide_cookiebanner":"","competition_end_date":"","contact_advertise_email":"","contact_advertise_phone":"","contact_editorial_email":"","contact_general_email":"","contact_general_phone":"","contact_office_hours":"","contact_physical_address":"","enabled":"","featured_image_custom_caption":"","featured_video_url":"","fields":"","font_body":"","font_header":"","frequency":"","headline":"","hide_border":"","icon":"","is_wp_suggestion":"","issuu_download_url":"","issuu_embed_url":"","language_version_url":"","large_border":"","name":"","nm_contact_name":"","nm_contact_number":"","nm_date_lost":"","no_overlay_background":"","node-url":"","obituary_born_date":"","obituary_died_date":"","obituary_memoriam_text":"","origin":"","overlay_color":"","overlay_opacity":"","overlay_size":"","placement":"","plural_label":"","post_author":"","post_id":"","post_language":"en","secret-key":"","sponsored_utm_campaign":"","sponsored_utm_content":"","sponsored_utm_medium":"","sponsored_utm_source":"","sponsored_utm_term":"","start_date":"","utm_suppression":"","video_embed_url":"","wp_pattern_sync_status":"","data_version":[],"enclosure":[],"pongrass_image":[],"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_content_restriction_is_exempt":false,"scaip_prevent_shortcode_addition":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"publication":[],"class_list":["post-45339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nImpofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light | Kouga Express<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The construction of the three 110-megawatt (MW) Impofu wind farms in Kouga will begin in March. This will be the largest pure private renewable energy plant in South Africa.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Kouga Express\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PEExpress1\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-02-29T12:52:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-13T13:29:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1623\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kouga Express\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kouga Express\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kouga Express\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d1ca9a7485fc5ec64ff4daf5b9e211aa\"},\"headline\":\"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-02-29T12:52:31+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-13T13:29:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":554,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#respond\"]}],\"copyrightYear\":\"2024\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/\",\"name\":\"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light | Kouga Express\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-02-29T12:52:31+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-13T13:29:52+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg\",\"width\":1623,\"height\":1080,\"caption\":\"Business Development manager at Red Cap Energy, and project manager of the Impofu Project, Jadon Schmidt. Photo: Supplied\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"News\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/\",\"name\":\"Kouga Express\",\"description\":\"To Inform, Engage and Empower Local Communities\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Kouga Express\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/kouga-express-site-icon-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/kouga-express-site-icon-1.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Kouga Express\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/PEExpress1\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/express_newspapers\\\/\"],\"description\":\"Kouga Express has been the eyes, ears, and voice of the Kouga area since 2004. Established with the goal of keeping the Kouga and Koukamma communities informed, we have grown into one of the most trusted local news sources in the region, with 20,000 free copies delivered mostly door to door every week. Kouga Express\u2019 distribution area includes Jeffreys Bay, Humansdorp, St. Francis Bay, Cape St. Francis, Aston Bay, Patensie, Hankey, Storms River, Tsitsikamma, Misgund, Joubertina, Krakeelrivier, Louterwater, Kareedouw, and Uniondale.\",\"email\":\"kougaexpress@novusmedia.co.za\",\"telephone\":\"042-992 5650\",\"legalName\":\"Novus Media (Pty) Ltd\",\"foundingDate\":\"2025-01-01\",\"vatID\":\"4100318916\",\"taxID\":\"2000\\\/018234\\\/07\",\"numberOfEmployees\":{\"@type\":\"QuantitativeValue\",\"minValue\":\"51\",\"maxValue\":\"200\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d1ca9a7485fc5ec64ff4daf5b9e211aa\",\"name\":\"Kouga Express\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f47e9234fbd437508ffebc42bafee4a1f7b8b5fc5b5e58a3881ac4edc0688cdd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f47e9234fbd437508ffebc42bafee4a1f7b8b5fc5b5e58a3881ac4edc0688cdd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f47e9234fbd437508ffebc42bafee4a1f7b8b5fc5b5e58a3881ac4edc0688cdd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kouga Express\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/kougaexpress\\\/author\\\/kougaexpress\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light | Kouga Express","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light","og_description":"The construction of the three 110-megawatt (MW) Impofu wind farms in Kouga will begin in March. This will be the largest pure private renewable energy plant in South Africa.","og_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/","og_site_name":"Kouga Express","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PEExpress1\/","article_published_time":"2024-02-29T12:52:31+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-03-13T13:29:52+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1623,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Kouga Express","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kouga Express","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/"},"author":{"name":"Kouga Express","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#\/schema\/person\/d1ca9a7485fc5ec64ff4daf5b9e211aa"},"headline":"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light","datePublished":"2024-02-29T12:52:31+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-13T13:29:52+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/"},"wordCount":554,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#respond"]}],"copyrightYear":"2024","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/","name":"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light | Kouga Express","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg","datePublished":"2024-02-29T12:52:31+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-13T13:29:52+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg","width":1623,"height":1080,"caption":"Business Development manager at Red Cap Energy, and project manager of the Impofu Project, Jadon Schmidt. Photo: Supplied"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/impofu-wind-farms-sas-largest-private-renewable-energy-plant-gets-green-light-20240228\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Impofu Wind Farms: SA\u2019s largest private renewable energy plant gets green light"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#website","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/","name":"Kouga Express","description":"To Inform, Engage and Empower Local Communities","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-ZA"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#organization","name":"Kouga Express","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/kouga-express-site-icon-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/kouga-express-site-icon-1.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Kouga Express"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PEExpress1\/","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/express_newspapers\/"],"description":"Kouga Express has been the eyes, ears, and voice of the Kouga area since 2004. Established with the goal of keeping the Kouga and Koukamma communities informed, we have grown into one of the most trusted local news sources in the region, with 20,000 free copies delivered mostly door to door every week. Kouga Express\u2019 distribution area includes Jeffreys Bay, Humansdorp, St. Francis Bay, Cape St. Francis, Aston Bay, Patensie, Hankey, Storms River, Tsitsikamma, Misgund, Joubertina, Krakeelrivier, Louterwater, Kareedouw, and Uniondale.","email":"kougaexpress@novusmedia.co.za","telephone":"042-992 5650","legalName":"Novus Media (Pty) Ltd","foundingDate":"2025-01-01","vatID":"4100318916","taxID":"2000\/018234\/07","numberOfEmployees":{"@type":"QuantitativeValue","minValue":"51","maxValue":"200"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/#\/schema\/person\/d1ca9a7485fc5ec64ff4daf5b9e211aa","name":"Kouga Express","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f47e9234fbd437508ffebc42bafee4a1f7b8b5fc5b5e58a3881ac4edc0688cdd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f47e9234fbd437508ffebc42bafee4a1f7b8b5fc5b5e58a3881ac4edc0688cdd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f47e9234fbd437508ffebc42bafee4a1f7b8b5fc5b5e58a3881ac4edc0688cdd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kouga Express"},"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/author\/kougaexpress\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/eefb79bd0d394cc8bdc4f73516355046.jpg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":48600,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/local-schools-creatively-celebrate-global-wind-day-20220720\/","url_meta":{"origin":45339,"position":0},"title":"Local schools creatively celebrate Global Wind Day","author":"Kouga Express","date":"21 July 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"More than 400 primary school learners in the Kouga region celebrated Global Wind Day (GWD) on June 15. The event was honoured across seven schools with a literacy competition themed \u2018Hear the Wind Sing\u2019.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1b585f8cabc04ab08bf4538897857d85.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1b585f8cabc04ab08bf4538897857d85.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1b585f8cabc04ab08bf4538897857d85.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1b585f8cabc04ab08bf4538897857d85.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1b585f8cabc04ab08bf4538897857d85.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/1b585f8cabc04ab08bf4538897857d85.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44593,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/construction-of-wind-turbine-tower-factory-well-under-way-in-jbay-20240807\/","url_meta":{"origin":45339,"position":1},"title":"Construction of wind turbine tower factory well under way in JBay","author":"Kouga Express","date":"8 August 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"THE Eastern Cape\u2019s economy is poised for growth with the ongoing construction of a new wind turbine concrete tower factory in Jeffreys Bay, scheduled for completion by September 2024.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e91baffb176a473688324db66cca355b.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e91baffb176a473688324db66cca355b.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e91baffb176a473688324db66cca355b.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e91baffb176a473688324db66cca355b.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e91baffb176a473688324db66cca355b.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/e91baffb176a473688324db66cca355b.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":55183,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/enel-breaks-ground-on-multi-billion-rand-wind-farm-20190529-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":45339,"position":2},"title":"Enel breaks ground on multi-billion Rand wind farm","author":"Kouga Express","date":"30 May 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"ENEL Green Power started construction of the 140MW wind farm in Oyster Bay.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":57545,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/gks-declares-protected-areas-20180815-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":45339,"position":3},"title":"GKS declares protected areas","author":"Kouga Express","date":"16 August 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"THE Kromensee Nature Reserve and The Sand River Private Nature Reserve were officially opened on Wednesday at an event held at St Francis Links in the Eastern Cape.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/4d331a99006f470b827cd6b99cf6be51.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/4d331a99006f470b827cd6b99cf6be51.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/4d331a99006f470b827cd6b99cf6be51.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/4d331a99006f470b827cd6b99cf6be51.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":49967,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/collaboration-yields-conservation-environmental-success-20211110-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":45339,"position":4},"title":"Collaboration yields conservation, environmental success","author":"Kouga Express","date":"11 November 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Since its inception six years ago, the Greater Kromme Stewardship initiative has been widely recognised for securing more priority land for conservation in the Kouga region than any other independent conservation body in the last 50 years.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/193be4f7a77948aebee6aeca53a5751d.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/193be4f7a77948aebee6aeca53a5751d.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/193be4f7a77948aebee6aeca53a5751d.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/193be4f7a77948aebee6aeca53a5751d.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":44369,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/local-electricians-join-wind-turbine-technician-training-programme-20240918\/","url_meta":{"origin":45339,"position":5},"title":"Local electricians join Wind Turbine Technician Training Programme","author":"Kouga Express","date":"19 September 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Two young Humansdorp electricians, Kanyisa Goveni (27) and Qaliswa Ndleleni (28), have been selected from hundreds of applicants to join the inaugural Wind Turbine Technician Training Programme launched by Jeffreys Bay Wind Farm in June.","rel":"","context":"In "News"","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/f0a6cb6df3d44936b89da78f7403d146.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/f0a6cb6df3d44936b89da78f7403d146.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/f0a6cb6df3d44936b89da78f7403d146.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Kouga Express","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45339\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45339"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=45339"},{"taxonomy":"publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/kougaexpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publication?post=45339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}