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Africa & Middle East / Industrial & mining

Thabazimbi chromium mine

Organizations, planners, suppliers, equipment, controls, and reported system specifications—with source-level citations.

CoverageDetailed public record
Named organizations5
System facts7
Sources reviewed4
Last researched2026-07-19

The Thabazimbi chrome-mine hybrid plant combines a 1 MW PV array with off-grid diesel generation. SMA identifies its Sunny Tripower inverters and Fuel Save Controller; project reporting identifies Cronimet as mine operator/developer and Solea Renewables as turnkey EPC.

Research status
Operational from November 2012 in the cited project period; current mine status not independently confirmed
Historical classification
Industrial
Reported capacity
See component specifications
Coordinates
-24.58284, 27.40277
Evidence note: “Every company” cannot be proven from public material alone. This page lists every organization found in the recovered record and reviewed sources, preserves unknown roles, and explicitly marks undisclosed controller or equipment details.
Report missing evidenceResearch methodology

Project delivery

Who was involved in Thabazimbi chromium mine?

5 publicly identified organizations. Where a recovered source named a participant without explaining its work, the role remains explicitly unspecified.

Organization

Cronimet Chrome Mining SA (Pty) Ltd.

Mine operator and power-system customer [2][4]

Organization

Cronimet Energy SA

Project financier and renewable-energy project entity [4]

Organization

Cronimet Mining Power Solutions

Hybrid-power developer and energy-solutions provider [4]

Organization

SMA Solar Technology

PV inverter and hybrid-controller supplier [2]

Organization

Solea Renewables

Turnkey solar EPC contractor [4]

System evidence

Reported capacity and specifications

Values can describe different project phases or components. Source citations are attached to each figure so discrepancies remain visible.

Solar PV
1 MW [2][4]
Reported solar generation
Up to 1.8 GWh per year [2]
Reported diesel savings
Approximately 450,000 litres per year [4]
PV penetration capability
Up to 60% under SMA Fuel Save Controller operation [3]

Controls and hardware

Equipment and controller details

Manufacturer and model are shown only when a source names them. Generic descriptions are not converted into guessed product assignments.

01

Hybrid controller

SMA — Fuel Save Controller

Controls PV feed-in against mine load and diesel operating conditions to maintain stability. [2]

02

PV inverters

SMA — Sunny Tripower

Model variant and unit count were not stated on the reviewed reference page. [2]

Recovered detail

Additional technical notes

Concise system facts recovered from the historical project record. Treat these as historical unless a newer primary source confirms them.

  • Generation

    PV, Diesel [1]

Provenance

4 sources

Primary owner, government, university, supplier, and engineering sources are preferred. Archived references preserve claims whose original pages moved or disappeared.

  1. [1]
    Recovered Microgrid Projects record

    Internet Archive · Archived source · captured 2021-01-17

  2. [2]
  3. [3]
    Solar diesel hybrid system at Thabazimbi

    SMA Solar Technology · Primary source

  4. [4]
    Hybrid power plant reduces mine operational costs

    Engineering News · Secondary research

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