Voith Siemens Hydro will supply the complete electro-mechanical equipment with the four pump-turbines at a rated output of 342 megawatts each, four motor-generators and the complete automation and control system for commissioning in 2013. The company’s German and Japanese Operating Units are joint partners in this project to design and manufacture the equipment, with the motor-generators coming from Kawasaki in Japan, while the pump-turbines will be supplied from the Heidenheim, Germany, workshops.

The Ingula pumped storage plant is being built close to the city of Ladysmith in eastern South Africa. This region is contributing a major share to the country’s electricity generation. The Bedford Stream will serve as an upper reservoir and will be connected to the power house by a headrace tunnel of around two kilometers length. A tunnel of similar length will be built in the tailrace area to lead the water into a lower reservoir towards the Braamhoek River.

With start of operation in 2013, Ingula’s four pump-turbine units will significantly contribute to grid stabilization by pumping water with excess electricity during low demand periods to the upper reservoir and releasing it from there again for peaking energy generation.

Ingula is the first new pumped storage scheme in South Africa after 25 years. In 1983, Eskom had built and started the Palmiet pumped storage plant in the Western Cape Province. Pump-turbines and motor-generators in this plant were also supplied by Voith Siemens Hydro.

Voith Siemens Hydro Power Generation is a Group Division of Voith and - with a workforce of around 3,000 employees and an order intake of more than 1 billion Euros in the past business year – Voith Siemens Hydro Power Generation belongs to the world-wide leading companies for hydro power equipment.

Voith is setting standards in the markets paper, energy, mobility and service. Founded on 1 January 1867, and nowadays with approximately 37,000 employees, a turnover of 4.2 billion Euros and more than 270 locations worldwide, Voith is one of Europe’s large family-owned companies.

Voith is an official partner of the initiative “Germany - Land of Ideas.”