Proposed amendment to the authorised layout of the Kudu Power Station Power lines, Northern Cape

The Kudu power station and 400KV lines were authorised for construction in 2017 and included the clearance of vegetation for the expansion of the substation, the development of the new road (over 4m wide) and the development of the structures and infrastructure for the transmission/distribution of electricity. The powerline corridor was authorised based on specific tower positions around the Orange river due to the high sensitivities.

The proposed amendments to the EA are to the technological/design aspects of the powerline which crosses the orange river, BUT will remain within the previously authorised corridor and are as follow:
Switch from 518 series to 540 series
Reduce the two X 400kv lines to one
Reduce the number of towers from 20 to 8
Increase the individual footprint of each tower from 12m² to 17m²
Repositioning of an existing tower on the south site of the substation

The motivation for these changes are that they:
Reduce the overall environmental impact on the area (fewer structures)
No flashover caused during blowout as new line will be further from the 66kv line
540 series allow for longer spans- fewer blowout issues
Longer span allows for higher clearance over the river
Overall improved reliability of the line- reduced risk.