Kumba signs Envusa deal for 63MW solar plant on Sishen waste dump

Kumba Iron Ore has signed an embedded energy offtake agreement with Envusa Energy for a solar photovoltaic plant inside the boundary of its Sishen mine, a step that will take renewables to roughly 45% of the iron ore producer's electricity supply.

According to details published on 24 July, the Sishen Solar PV project will have an installed capacity of 72.5MWp on the direct-current side and will deliver 63MW of alternating-current power to the mine. First power is expected in the fourth quarter of 2027.

Building on mined-out ground

The plant will be built on the G80 waste rock dump, land that has already been disturbed by mining. Kumba said the site presented difficult geotechnical conditions that required tailored engineering. It is the first embedded project under the Envusa programme to reach this stage. Envusa is the renewable energy venture backed by Anglo American, and it has already completed its Koruson 2 cluster, which comprises the 240MW MooiPlaats solar project and the 140MW Umsobomvu and Hartebeesthoek wind farms in the Eastern and Northern Cape.

Kolomela, Kumba's second mine, has been receiving 11MW of wheeled renewable electricity from that cluster since March 2026. Together, the two arrangements account for the projected 45% renewable share.

Emissions and ownership

Once running, the Sishen plant is expected to remove about 35% of the mine's current Scope 2 emissions, the indirect emissions from purchased electricity. That supports Kumba's goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 28% by 2030 against a re-based 2020 level, and feeds into Anglo American's group climate targets.

The Sishen Iron Ore Company Community Development Trust will buy a 10% stake in the solar project, and Kumba said the trust would reinvest dividends in education, healthcare, infrastructure and livelihood programmes around the mine. The company also committed to prioritising local hiring and suppliers during construction and operation.

Chief executive Mpumi Zikalala said the project was designed to deliver reliable, cost-competitive power and described it as another milestone in Kumba's shift to lower-carbon mining.

Why it matters

For Northern Cape miners, electricity is both a cost and a reliability issue. Solar generated on site offers a hedge against rising grid tariffs, and the location on a waste dump avoids competing with mining for productive ground. It also strengthens Kumba's marketing pitch. The company sells high-grade lump ore that steelmakers can charge directly into blast furnaces, and it has argued that decarbonisation pressure in steelmaking supports demand for such products. Lowering the carbon footprint of the ore itself adds to that argument.

The announcement came in the same week as Kumba's interim results, in which the company reported that Kolomela had started receiving wheeled renewable electricity during the half.

Sources

• Mining Review Africa: Envusa to supply renewable electricity to Kumba's Sishen mine, 24 Jul 2026
• Anglo American Kumba Iron Ore: Kumba Iron Ore's interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2026, 28 Jul 2026

Photo: Benches and haul roads at Sishen iron ore mine in the Northern Cape. Graeme Williams, Media Club, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.