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ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS:


Site assessment conducted
Reference Panel approved
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Environmental

Palmiet, South Africa
Positive sustainability aspect
Siting & design
Scheme shortlisted for investigation, no formal scheme nomination received.
tab1 Overview tab2 Details tab3 Other Aspects tab4 Further Information tab5
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Overview

Palmiet was commissioned in 1988 by the national electricity utility Eskom and South Africa's Department of Water Affairs and Forestry. The partnership enabled the optimization of the use of water for:

  • a pumped storage operation to provide system stability for the South African electricity network, as well as
  • the provision of extra water supply for the greater Cape Town municipal area.
The Palmiet Pumped Storage Scheme was constructed in one of the spurs of the Hottentots Holland Mountains through which the Plamiet River flows. It transfers water via reversible pump turbines from the lower Kogelberg reservoir on the Palmiet River to the Rockview reservoir on the watershed between the Palmiet and Steenbras rivers and thence by conduit to the Steenbras upper reservoir.  This enables Palmiet to not only function as a hydroelectric pumped storage power station, but also as a water transfer scheme.
Scheme Specifications

Dam Name
Scheme operator
Eskom Holdings Ltd.		 Size of scheme (MW)
400 MW
Country
South Africa		 Catchment area
Palmiet River catchment - 535 km2
River
Between Palmiet & Steenbras Rivers		 Effective reservoir capacity
Rockview Dam (upper reservoir) - 20,800 ML

Kogelberg Dam (lower reservoir) - 19,300 ML
Construction years
1983 - 1988		 Reservoir size
Rockview Dam - 73.4 Hectares
Kogelberg Dam - 155.4 Hectares
External recognition

1987 Most Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement awarded by the South African Institute of Civil Engineers.

1988 Integrated environmental planning and management award from the Environmental Planning Professions Inter-disciplinary Committee (EPPIC)

1997 Conserva Award for outstanding achievement in effective conservation and sustainable utilisation of the environment to ensure a better quality of living for all South Africans by the South African Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism.

2000, 2002, 2003
NOSCAR award (NOSA’s most prestigious annual achievement award) – for excelling in the field of occupational health, safety and environmental risk management.

Recognition was given by NOSA to 100 companies who demonstrated world class performance in occupational risk management and related systems certifications of which Eskom Peaking Generation - Palmiet Power Station was one.
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