Murray & Roberts has played a key role in constructing much of South Africa’s existing power station infrastructure over the past 50 years. The need for new electricity capacity in South Africa has reached a critical stage and the planned Eskom power generation program will reinstate reliable electricity supply to South Africa and its neighbours over the next 20 years.
Murray & Roberts is contracted to Hitachi Power Africa for the Medupi and Kusile boiler packages comprising 12 units of about 800 megawatt electrical (MWe) each. The Murray & Roberts scope includes structural steel fabrication, erection and mechanical installation works. These power stations are the largest dry-cooled thermal power stations in the world. Medupi will be in full operation by 2015 and Kusile in 2016.
A number of Murray & Roberts companies are engaged in this project based on their experience gained from the previous power station build program. Murray & Roberts MEI will deliver the project and fabrication of the structural steelwork is being undertaken by Genrec. Steel ducting is being fabricated by Energy Fabrication, a new empowered special purpose company established on site. First structural steel was delivered to Medupi in January 2009 and air duct fabrication commenced in May 2009.
Murray & Roberts secured the civil construction work for Medupi in joint venture. Client delays during the start-up of the project are being overcome by an acceleration program requested by Eskom which commenced in July 2009 and will involve the deployment of an additional 1 600 employees to the project. The civil project currently employs 3 100 people.
Medupi is South Africa’s first greenfield coal-fired power station in more than two decades. It will have a capacity of up to 4 800 MWe when its sixth unit is commissioned in 2015.
