South Africa has tapped seven international-led bidders for rolling out electricity transmission infrastructure under the first stage of its Independent Transmission Projects (ITP) Procurement Programme. The announcement, made by electricity & energy minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa on Monday, sets out plans to expand the country’s transmission network so as to link new electricity generation, including renewable energy, to the national grid. “Transmission remains a national monopoly, but private sector liquidity is essential to fund the required expansion,” Ramokgopa said, noting the rapid timeline from the programme’s initial announcement in July to the release of pre-qualified bidders in December.
Ramokgopa said international companies are leading this first phase because of the technical expertise and capacity they bring. “While international players lead in this first phase, over time, South African companies will take the lead. “Industrialisation and localisation requirements are embedded in the programme to ensure that private sector investment delivers tangible domestic economic benefits,” he added.
The seven pre-qualified bidders are the Adani Power Middle East Ltd-Momentous Energy Consortium, led by India’s Adani Power; AREF Cobra Transmission, led by Spain’s Grupo Cobra; Consortium Pulse Infrastructure, led by Spain’s Celeo Redes; EITP Consortium, led by Okavango Projects; State Grid Consortium, led by China’s State Grid International Development; Transmission Africa Consortium, led by China Southern Power Grid International; and The Hyperion Consortium, led by EDF EN South Africa, a joint venture between France and South Africa. Ramokgopa said pre-qualification does not guarantee the bidders will execute the projects. “These bidders have been approved to move into the next stage, which involves detailed proposals and structuring under a draft request for proposals.
Read Full Article on Business Day
[paywall]
Final selection will depend on the outcome of these evaluations,” he said. The ITP programme started with requests for information in December 2024, followed by the request for pre-qualification stage that closed in September 2025. Pre-qualified bidders will next receive a draft request for proposals (RFP), with the final RFP expected in the third quarter of the 2026/27 financial year.
Government officials said the process is designed to ensure projects are aligned with market and lender requirements and to reduce delays once bids are formally submitted. Ramokgopa said expanding transmission infrastructure is urgent. “We are likely to run into problems in the future if we do not expand and diversify electricity generation.
Without action, we could face an electricity deficit.” Ramokgopa also gave an update on generation projects. Eight independent power projects reached commercial operation during the 2025/26 financial year, adding 800MW to the national grid. The projects are concentrated in the Western Cape, the Eastern Cape and the Northern Cape, with strong renewable energy potential but constrained grids.
An additional 1,610MW from 15 projects is under construction and expected to come online in 2026 and 2027. The Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme Bid Window 7 has attracted strong private sector interest, he said. While the programme requested 5,000MW, bids totalling 10.2GW were submitted.
[/paywall]
