Power mix by fuel (South Africa)
Plant counts by primary fuel, WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
South Africa electricity grid — mix & carbon intensity (2025)
Source: Ember / Our World in Data (CC BY 4.0).
The state of South Africa’s power emissions
Across the 23 South Africa power plants carrying an asset-level CO₂ figure in this open dataset, total emissions are about 211 Mt CO₂/yr. The single largest emitter, Medupi power station (coal), accounts for about 10% of that 23-plant reported subset (not of the whole country). The top three owners — Eskom, Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd, Sasol Synfuels Pty Ltd — control roughly 99% of that 23-plant reported subset. Most of these plants sit in a temperate Köppen climate zone.
Largest emitters (Mt CO₂/yr)
Emissions by owner (Mt CO₂/yr)
CO₂ — measured (US EPA / EU ETS) or modelled (Climate TRACE), per plant · backbone WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0) · climate: Köppen-Geiger (WorldClim). CC BY 4.0.
Largest plants in South Africa
| # | Plant | Fuel | MW |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kusile Power Station | Coal | 4,800 |
| 2 | Medupi West power station | Coal | 4,800 |
| 3 | Medupi power station | Coal | 4,769 |
| 4 | Majuba power station | Coal | 4,143 |
| 5 | Kendal power station | Coal | 4,116 |
| 6 | Matimba power station | Coal | 3,990 |
| 7 | Lethabo power station | Coal | 3,708 |
| 8 | Tutuka power station | Coal | 3,654 |
| 9 | Matla power station | Coal | 3,600 |
| 10 | Richards Bay (Mhlathuze Energy) power station | Gas | 3,300 |
| 11 | Duvha power station | Coal | 3,000 |
| 12 | Kriel power station | Coal | 3,000 |
| 13 | Nseleni Independent Floating power station | Gas | 2,800 |
| 14 | Arnot power station | Coal | 2,352 |
| 15 | Hendrina power station | Coal | 2,000 |
| 16 | Koeberg | Nuclear | 1,940 |
| 17 | Camden power station | Coal | 1,600 |
| 18 | Coal-3 power station | Coal | 1,500 |
| 19 | Unnamed South Africa coal projects | Coal | 1,500 |
| 20 | Ankerlig | Oil | 1,338 |
Browse by fuel
Power plants in South Africa by region
Cite this
Inzonex PowerAtlas (2026). Asset-level power-plant CO2 emissions — South Africa. Derived from WRI GPPD, Climate TRACE, US EPA GHGRP and EU ETS (CC BY 4.0). https://inzonex.co.uk/poweratlas/south-africa/
Frequently asked questions
How many power plants are in South Africa?
There are 143 current or operating power-plant records in South Africa in this open dataset, with about 84,827 MW of capacity. Historical and pipeline records remain available separately.
What is the largest power plant in South Africa?
Kusile Power Station is the largest at about 4,800 MW (coal).
What fuels generate electricity in South Africa?
The most common plant type in this dataset is solar (44 plants), across 10 fuel types in total.
How clean is South Africa's electricity grid?
South Africa's grid carbon intensity is about 699 gCO₂/kWh, with 17.8% low-carbon generation (<a href="https://ember-energy.org/" rel="nofollow">Ember</a> / <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/energy" rel="nofollow">Our World in Data</a> (CC BY 4.0)).