Written By: Faith Jemosop
What is the Haru BESS Project?
In the windswept plains of Northern Cape, South Africa, a quiet revolution is taking shape. At first glance, the site looks like just another piece of industrial infrastructure. But underneath the steel and wires lies a transformative force for Africa’s energy future: the Haru Battery Energy Storage System (BESS).
With 492 megawatt-hours of storage capacity and a price tag of $120 million, Haru isn’t just a technical milestone, it’s a symbolic one. It’s South Africa’s largest grid-scale battery project to date and a signal to the continent: clean energy doesn’t just depend on sunshine and wind,it depends on storage.
Why Scatec Is Investing in South Africa’s Energy Transition
Scatec ASA, a Norwegian renewable energy giant, has long had its sights on emerging markets. But this latest investment into Haru shows a deeper strategy: unlocking Africa’s energy grid potential through storage.
In a grid often plagued by load shedding, unstable voltage, and fossil fuel overdependence, the promise of BESS is simple but powerful: store excess power when generation is high, and release it when the grid is strained. It’s the modern answer to a decades-old problem.
Scatec’s commitment isn’t incidental, it’s intentional. By pumping $120 million into this project, Scatec is betting on a new Africa: one where energy reliability supports economic growth and decarbonization goes hand-in-hand with industrialization.
“Storage is the enabler of a flexible, renewable energy future,” said Raymond Carlsen, CEO of Scatec. “With Haru, we’re not just building batteries; we’re building confidence in clean power.”
Who Owns the Haru Project? (Equity Breakdown)
The Haru BESS project is not a solo act. It’s a finely tuned financial ballet involving both local and international players.
- Scatec ASA owns 51% equity, maintaining operational control.
- H1 Holdings, a South African Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) investment firm, holds 29%.
- The remaining 20% is split between Redstreet and Greenstreet, local South African entities aimed at building skills and energy equity.
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This ownership structure is significant. It reflects a shift from extractive to inclusive investment, and shows that clean energy development in Africa doesn’t have to bypass local stakeholders.
It’s also a blueprint: equity partnerships that balance global financing muscle with local community benefit, a model the continent will likely see more of.
How Global Capital Is Backing African Clean Energy
What’s most interesting about the Haru project is how private capital is flowing in. This isn’t a government-funded experiment. It’s fully privately financed, with debt raised from a blend of international green funds and local financial institutions.
And Scatec isn’t the only global player betting big. Battery storage investment opportunities in Africa have become increasingly attractive to climate-conscious investors, especially as BESS prices fall and performance improves.
The Haru project has made headlines not just because of its size, but because of its timing. With Eskom’s grid strained, and coal retirements on the horizon, investors are eyeing storage as the safety net the continent desperately needs.
“If energy is Africa’s backbone, then storage is its nervous system,” said Nhlanhla Maseko, an analyst at the African Energy Council. “Without it, renewables will always be second-best to fossil fuels.”
What This Means for Future BESS Auctions
Haru BESS is just the beginning. South Africa’s Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has already hinted at a series of upcoming BESS auctions under the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (RMIPPPP).
These auctions could open the door to gigawatt-scale storage capacity, with potential funding from both multilateral donors and green finance portfolios.
Why is this important? Because costs are coming down. In 2010, grid-scale lithium-ion storage cost over $1,100 per kilowatt-hour. In 2025, it’s hovering around $150–$200. That makes storage not just environmentally sound, but economically sensible.
Human Story, A Community Empowered by Storage
In the nearby town of Pofadder, local electrician Mpho Ledwaba has seen the future up close. He was hired as a trainee technician for the Haru project.
“Before this, we had blackouts almost every week,” he says. “Now, we’re part of something bigger. I’ve learned skills I never thought possible, and I’m staying in Pofadder instead of moving to Cape Town.”
Mpho’s story is repeated across the project: hundreds of temporary and permanent jobs, skill-building for youth, and long-term community investment. Storage, in this sense, isn’t just about electrons. It’s about empowerment.
