Largest private wind farm in South Africa

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Technews Industry Guide: Sustainable Manufacturing 2025 Motion Control & Drives

The Witberg wind farm will prevent the emission of more than 420 000 tons of CO2 per year in 122 000 households in the Western Cape. This wind farm, scheduled to come online in the first quarter of 2026, will be the largest private facility built to date in the country and will feature 24 V 136-4,5 MW turbines. Sarens has been directly involved in this project on behalf of Kuehne+Nagel, transporting the components of the 24 wind turbines, each weighing over 391 tons, divided into 216 loads.

The Witberg wind farm, located between Touws River and Laingsburg in Western Cape, will represent a significant step forward for this region of South Africa, reducing power cuts and addressing the country’s energy shortage. In addition, this wind farm, which will be the largest private facility of its kind built to date in South Africa, will prevent the emission of approximately 420792 tons of CO2 a year, supplying renewable energy to more than

122 500 homes in the region.

Sarens, a world leader in heavy lifting, engineered transport and crane rental services, has contributed directly to the development of this strategic project for the South African energy sector. On behalf of Kuehne+Nagel, Sarens has worked on the transport of the components of the 24 wind turbines that make up the wind farm, with a combined weight of more than 391 tons divided into 216 loads. To do this, 18 transport combinations were used, as well as 36 private escort vehicles to transport the main components from the Saldanha Laydown Area and the tower sections from the GRI tower factory in Atlantis.

The Sarens engineering team had to deal with a steep incline when entering the site. Considering the weight of the loads, this meant using an 8x8 truck to pull the components, as a normal 8x6 truck with ballast was not sufficient. In addition, to facilitate the movement of the blades, each over 66 metres long, it was necessary to use a gyro table provided by the component manufacturer.

This new wind farm, which will come into operation in the first quarter of 2026, will have 24 V 136-4,5 MW turbines manufactured by Vestas, a nominal power of 108 MW and a contracted power of 103 MW. Developed by Sibanye-Stillwater and operated by Red Rocket Energy, this facility will have a significant impact on both direct and indirect job creation in the region, as well as on the reliability of its energy grid.

Sarens brings over 25 years of experience in the lifting, transportation and installation of onshore wind turbines across all types of terrain. With a portfolio spanning more than 7000 wind turbine installations in over

40 countries, Sarens has helped deliver over

25 000 MW of installed wind capacity worldwide, from high-altitude mountain sites to remote desert and coastal locations. Recent projects include operations in sub-zero temperatures in Belarus where Sarens installed the tallest Vestas turbines in Asmolovichi, and in Australia where the tallest wind towers were erected at the Glenn Innes wind farm in New South Wales.

Sarens is the global leader and reference in crane rental, heavy lift and engineered transportation services. With state-of-the-art

equipment, one of the world’s largest inventories of cranes, transporters and special rigging equipment, Sarens offers creative and intelligent solutions to today’s heavy lifting and engineering transport challenges.

For more information contact Sarens, +27 11 749 3300, [email protected], www.sarens.com

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Largest private wind farm in South Africa

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