Platinum group metals (PGMs) miner Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) has, through its wholly owned Rustenburg Platinum Mines (RPM) subsidiary, entered into a 20-year energy offtake agreement (EOA) with Envusa Energy.

Envusa is a joint venture between EDF Renewables and Amplats' parent company Anglo American with a focus on establishing a regional renewable energy ecosystem (RREE) in Southern Africa.

Envusa will operate as an energy trader sourcing energy generated from renewable sources – from separate generation plants, in which Envusa will hold a majority shareholding – through power purchase agreements (PPAs) and then sell this energy to offtakers.

Under the EOA, Envusa will supply RPM with about 460 MW of renewable energy generated through its Koruson 2 solar and wind projects, on the border between the Eastern Cape and the Northern Cape, using State-owned utility Eskom’s electricity grid.

Construction on the Koruson 2 projects is expected to begin this year, with all projects expected to reach commercial operation during 2026.

Each Koruson 2 project will be built, owned and operated by Envusa subsidiaries, which will be funded by a combination of Envusa’s shareholders and a consortium of external lenders.

Considering the Koruson 2 projects will be majority project financed, RPM will enter into ancillary agreements with the consortium of lenders, as is market practice in project finance transactions.

“The conclusion of the EOA with Envusa to secure clean energy for our operations is a significant milestone in our journey towards our decarbonisation commitments, ensuring that our PGM metals, which are themselves critical to enabling the just energy transition, are produced in a safe and sustainable manner, supporting our environment, social and governance leadership priority.

"In addition, the generation of energy from these wind and solar projects will provide further resilience to Eskom’s national electricity provision and reduce our electricity costs,” says Amplats CEO Craig Miller.

This arrangement supports Amplats' commitment to reduce its greenhouse-gas emissions by 30% by 2030 and achieve carbon neutral operations by 2040 – Scope 1 and 2 emissions. At steady state, the EOA will result in RPM sourcing about 35% of its energy from renewable sources.