West Coast 1 Wind Farm

West Coast 1 Wind Farm

The wind farm’s primary areas of community development are in Vredenburg and specifically the Louwville township, but also Saldanha Bay, St Helena Bay and Veldrift. The project committed 1.5% of its total revenue towards socio-economic development. A community trust holds 2.5% of the shares in the project company.

The West Coast 1 wind farm is a 94 MW project comprising 47 Vestas V90 2.0 MW turbines. The Department of Energy approved the project in Round 2 of the REIPPPP. It is situated on farmland close to the town of Vredenburg in the Western Cape. and has been fully operational since June 2015.

The wind farm’s primary areas of community development are in Vredenburg and specifically the Louwville township, but also Saldanha Bay, St Helena Bay and Veldrift. The project committed 1.5% of its total revenue towards socio-economic development. A community trust holds 2.5% of the shares in the project company.

Community benefit highlights

1. Leadership and values training for teachers and parents as part of building an effective school community
2. Infrastructural and registration support to ECD Centres
3. Provision of tertiary bursaries to 20 school children
4. Registration and support of social enterprises, ensuring economic sustainability
5. Development of supportive platforms for young women, aimed at HIV/Aids awareness and empowerment

Community ownership

The West Coast 1Trust holds 2.5% of the total shares in the wind farm project company. The beneficiaries of the trust’s activities are the residents of the Saldanha Bay Municipality, including the town of Vredenburg.

The trust aims to promote and advance black economic empowerment with a preference for the empowerment of women, workers, youth, the disabled or people living in proximity to the West Coast 1 wind farm.