EDF - Environmental and Social Scoping Report for the Proposed Ntabande Wind Energy Facility and Associated Infrastructure, Mpumalanga Province

EDF Renewables (Pty) Ltd (EDF-R) is proposing to apply for Environmental Authorisation (EA) to develop the Ntabande Wind Farm site through the special purpose vehicle of Ntabande Wind Power (Pty) Ltd (Ntabande) (the proposed Project). The purpose of the proposed Project is to provide additional megawatts to the country’s electricity system through private sector investment in renewable energy.

Ntabande Wind Power (Pty) Ltd (the Applicant) previously submitted an application for Environmental Authorisation (EA) for the Project on 20 September 2024 to the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) Reference Number: 14/12/16/3/3/2/2632.

The Final Scoping Report was subsequently submitted to the DFFE on 4 November 2024 and was accepted on 26 November 2024.
During the Scoping Phase, comments and input received from stakeholders, together with the findings of the assessment process, identified the need for additional monitoring and analysis. However, due to seasonal (multiple) and lengthy monitoring requirements, these could not be undertaken within 106 days prescribed by Section 23 (1) in the EIA Regulations. In light of these requirements, the Applicant elected not to proceed with submission of an Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIR) until the additional information and monitoring necessary to adequately address the identified matters could be undertaken. The previous application subsequently lapsed. This approach was taken with the intention of ensuring that the environmental information available to inform the assessment and decision-making process would be sufficiently comprehensive and that matters raised through the previous public participation process are appropriately considered and addressed.

The Applicant now intends to resubmit an application for EA for the same development, in accordance with Regulation 21(2) of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, 2014, promulgated in terms of the National Environmental Management Act, 1998 (Act No.107 of 1998) (NEMA), subject to the requirements and conditions of that regulation.

SLR Consulting (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd (SLR), an independent firm of Environmental Assessment Practitioners, has been appointed by EDF to manage the environmental authorisation processes.

Status

Notice is hereby given, in terms of the EIA Regulations, 2014 promulgated under NEMA, that the EIA Report prepared for the above-mentioned project has been made available for a 30-day public review and comment period from 6 October 2026 - 5 November 2026.

Should you and/or your organisation wish to comment on any aspect of the EIA Report, comments should be forwarded to SLR at the email address and telephone number shown above. For comments to be included in the Scoping and Environmental Impact Assessment Report prepared for the decision-making purposes, they should reach SLR by no later than 5 November 2026.

By providing your personal information to submit a comment, you will be included in the SLR an Interested and Affected Party (I&AP) database, and you consent to SLR managing your information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013. It is assumed that as an I&AP for this Project you authorise SLR to retain and use your Personal Information as part of a contact database for this and/or other Social and Environmental Impact Assessments (ESIA) and that you confirm your acceptance for SLR to contact you regarding this and/or other ESIA processes. SLR will not process your Personal Information, other than as permitted or required by ESIA processes, or as required by law or public policy. SLR will use reasonable, appropriate security safeguards to protect Personal Information, and to reasonably prevent any damage to, loss of, or unauthorised access or disclosure of Personal Information, other than as required for ESIA processes or as required by any Law or public policy. You may request for your Personal Information to be deleted from the I&AP database at any time by contacting SLR.