Gas power plant in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Approximate location -28.741789, 32.034288.
GasKwaZulu-NatalSouth AfricaCCGT · HRSGPre Construction
Phakwe Richards Bay Power Plant is a 2,000 MW gas power station in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is operated by Phakwe Richards Bay Gas Power 3 Pty Ltd [100%]. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 2.3 million homes (estimated). It ranks #19 of 152 South Africa power plants by installed capacity. In context, gas supplies about 0.0% of South Africa's electricity; the national grid averages 699 gCO₂/kWh (17.8% low-carbon) (2025).
Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id GOGPT_phakwerichardsbay_southa.
Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.
The capacity and fuel fields on this page are source-record values from the upstream open dataset. They are useful for identification and ranking, but they have not been upgraded to a 2026 registry/GEM-location verified value.
capacity: GEM GOGPT; fuel: GEM GOGPT
At 2,000 MW, Phakwe Richards Bay Power Plant is well above the median gas plant in South Africa (670 MW). Technically it is described as CCGT; combined-cycle with a heat-recovery steam generator (HRSG). Its current lifecycle status is “Pre Construction” — so it is not yet, or no longer, generating at full output. Gas plants burn natural gas either in open-cycle turbines for fast peaking, or in combined-cycle units that recover exhaust heat in an HRSG to reach roughly 55–62% efficiency — the cleanest-burning fossil option.
Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.
Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
Operated by Phakwe Richards Bay Gas Power 3 Pty Ltd [100%].
This gas plant burns natural gas in a turbine — often in a combined-cycle setup — to generate electricity. It sits in a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) — Southern Hemisphere, latitude 28.7°S — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.
Climate zone & typical temperatures: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).
For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in an aggressive, high-corrosion environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C5 — Very high), with marine salt corrosion the leading environmental stress.
Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.
Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.
The #5 largest gas power plant of 15 in South Africa by capacity.
South Africa has 15 gas power plants in this dataset, together about 19,062 MW of capacity.
Coordinates -28.741789, 32.034288 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.
Phakwe Richards Bay Power Plant is a 2,000 MW gas power plant in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, Pre Construction 2030.
Its output is enough to supply roughly 2,252,571 homes (estimated).
Phakwe Richards Bay Power Plant is operated by Phakwe Richards Bay Gas Power 3 Pty Ltd [100%].
