Mulilo achieved financial close on its 380 MWdc Beaufort West Solar PV project in South Africa’s Western Cape, one of the country’s largest utility-scale solar developments. The project will supply 818 GWh of clean electricity annually under a long-term PPA with NOA, power around 345,000 homes, and avoid 860,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions each year.
PROJECT SNAPSHOT
Company: Mulilo
Project: Beaufort West Solar + BESS
Capacity: 380 MW solar
Location: Beaufort West, Western Cape, South Africa
Technology: Solar PV with battery storage integration
Status: Financial close achieved (2026)
Function: Dispatchable renewable energy, grid balancing
Portfolio: Multi-GW solar and storage pipeline
Mulilo announce that it has successfully reached financial close on a 380 MW solar photovoltaic project located in Beaufort West in South Africa’s Western Cape. The facility is having an installed capacity of 380 MWDC, a contracted export capacity of 250 MWAC. It will connect to Droërivier main transmission substation and enables efficient integration into the national grid.
This financial close in 2026 marks Mulilo’s fourth project to reach this milestone. The Orkney Solar PV project in the North West Province and the Middlepunt Solar PV and Mercury BESS projects in the Free State follows this. With the Beaufort West Solar PV project, Mulilo exceeds its annual deployment target of 1 GW annually and expands its total portfolio to 2 GW through operational and construction stages. This showcases its continued growth in renewable energy sector.
Once this is operational, the facility is expected to generate around 818 GWh of clean electricity annually. This is supplied to commercial and industrial customers across South Africa under a long-term power purchase agreement with NOA. With this process, the project is estimated to avoid approximately 860,000 tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions each year and produce enough electricity to power about 345,000 households annually.
This achievement was supported by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Norfund, along with collaboration between Mulilo and its funding, legal, and advisory partners, including Absa, Standard Bank, Investec, Nedbank, Bowmans, PepperTree Capital, Fasken, and Arup.
Jan Fourie, CEO of Mulilo stated that the Beaufort West Solar PV project was Mulilo’s first renewable energy project in the Western Cape and stands as a testament to Mulilo’s unwavering commitment to driving South Africa’s energy transition. He also added that collaboration with NOA helps in reaching financial close, in which the project aims to deliver reliable clean power at scale and support long-term sustainable development.
Energy trader NOA will manage the sale of power to commercial and industrial customers. This year along with this project, Mulilo has secured financing for these three key sites:
The Middlepunt Solar PV project in Free State reached its financial close on 14 April 2026. It is having a capacity of 337 MWdc (240 MWac export). It stands out for delivering power at one of the lowest global tariffs (ZAR 458/MWh). It is the first project from REIPPPP Bid Window 7 to reach this milestone.
Orkney Solar PV (North West) Province is another close on February 24, 2026, with a capacity of 219 MWdc. The power generated from this project will be sold to commercial customers through Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Etana Energy.
The Mercury Battery Energy Storage project in Free State, reached its financial close on 21 April 2026. Having a capacity of 76 MW / 304 MWh battery storage, it is located near Viljoenskroon. It was selected under the government's second Battery Energy Storage IPP procurement window.