DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT REPORT: The Proposed Gas to Power Powership Project at the Port of Saldanha Bay, Saldanha Local Municipality, Western Cape DEFF REF NO: 14/12/16/3/3/2/2006 A Project of Karpowership SA (PTY) Ltd REPORT 26 February 2021 DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSSMENT ASSESSSMENT IMPACT ENVIRONMENTAL DRAFT DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION Applicant: Karpowership SA (Pty) Ltd Report name: Draft Environmental Impact Assessment Report for the Proposed Powership at Port of Saldanha, Saldanha Local Municipality, Western Cape Report type: Draft Environmental Impact Assessment Report Project name: Proposed Gas to Power Powership Project at the Port of Saldanha at Saldanha Bay Local Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa Project number: E-BL01.200445 Version: Original Compiled and Authorised by: Compiled By: Date Signature Nerita Sewnath February 2021 Environmental Consultant Zayd Hoosen February 2021 Environmental Consultant Reviewed By: Date Signature Shanice Singh February 2021 EAPASA Sustainability Consultant Melissa Gopaul (nee Padayachee) February 2021 (Pri.Sci.Nat | EAPASA) Senior Sustainability Consultant Janice Tooley February 2021 Environmental Legal Advisor Authorised By: Date Signature Hantie Plomp (Pri.Sci.Nat | EAPASA) February 2021 Director COMPILED FOR: COMPILED BY: Karpowership SA (Pty) Ltd Triplo4 Sustainable Solutions (Pty) Ltd Suite 5, The Circle, Douglas Crowe Drive, Ballito, 4420 +27 (0)3 946 3213 +27 (0)32 946 0826 [email protected] www.triplo4.com © Copyright 2021 Triplo4 Sustainable Solutions EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The proposed Gas to Power Powership Project at the Port of Saldanha has been formulated in response to the Request for Proposals (RFP) for New Generation Capacity under the Risk Mitigation IPP Procurement Programme issued by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy to alleviate the immediate and future capacity deficit as well as the limited, unreliable and poorly diversified provision of power generating technology with its adverse environmental and economic impacts. The “Emergency/Risk Mitigation Power Purchase Procurement Programme (2000MW): National” has also been designated the status of a Strategic Integrated Project (SIP) under the Infrastructure Development Act, 2014 by the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Commission. SIPs are considered to be projects of significant economic or social importance to South Africa as a whole or regionally that give effect to the national infrastructure plan and for this reason, can be expeditiously implemented through the provisions of the enabling Act. At the time of this report, the preferred bidder status had not been confirmed. The Project entails the generation of electricity from a floating mobile Powership moored in the Port of Saldanha Bay. The Port activities falls under the jurisdiction of the Transnet National Port Authority (TNPA) and the associated land-based activities are located on land owned by Transnet, Eskom and other private industry landowners. The proposed combined design capacity for the Powership is 415MW, comprising 21 reciprocating engines and 2 steam turbines. A Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) will act as the storage and regasification facility. A Liquefied Natural Gas Carrier will supply the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to the FSRU over a 1 – to - 2 day period approximately every 20 days. The associated evacuation route is dependent on the position of the Powership within the Port of Saldanha. The power from the Powership will either be evacuated by means of a double circuit twin Chicadee conductor 132kV line. This line will interconnect the Powership to the National Grid utilising the existing Aurora- Saldanha Steel network via a new 132kV on shore switching station. Alternatively, the power that is generated is then converted by the on-board High Voltage substation (capacity of 110 – 170kV) and the electricity evacuated via a 132kV transmission line over a distance of approximately 7.5 km to the Eskom Blouwater Substation which feeds into the national grid. Alternatives being considered for this Project include two ship positions, two alternative routes for the gas pipeline, and two alternative evacuation routes. The Project triggers a number of activities listed under the National Environmental Management Act 107 of 1998 (NEMA) which require environmental authorisation prior to commencement. Because these listed activities include activities described in the EIA Regulations Listing Notice 2 of 2014, the process that is required to be applied to the application for environmental authorisation is Scoping and Environmental Impact Reporting (S&EIR). The procedural requirements for S&EIR are set out in the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulations, 2014 (as amended) (the EIA Regulations, 2014). Scoping has already been concluded with the acceptance of the Scoping Report, including the plan of study for the EIA by the competent authority, namely the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF) on 6 January 2021. This draft EIA Report is part of the EIR phase and has been distributed for comment as part of the public participation process. i The objectives of the EIA process is, through a consultative process with Interested and Affected Parties (I&APs), including relevant organs of state, to: determine the policy and legislative context within which the activity is located and document how the proposed activity complies with and responds to the policy and legislative context; describe the need and desirability of the proposed activity, including the need and desirability of the activity in the context of the development footprint on the approved site as contemplated in the accepted scoping report; identify the location of the development footprint within the approved site as contemplated in the accepted scoping report based on an impact and risk assessment process inclusive of cumulative impacts and a ranking process of all the identified development footprint alternatives focusing on the geographical, physical, biological, social, economic, heritage and cultural aspects of the environment; determine the- o nature, significance, consequence, extent, duration and probability of the impacts occurring to inform identified preferred alternatives; and o degree to which these impacts can be reversed; may cause irreplaceable loss of resources, and can be avoided, managed or mitigated; identify the most ideal location for the activity within the development footprint of the approved site as contemplated in the accepted scoping report based on the lowest level of environmental sensitivity identified during the assessment; identify, assess, and rank the impacts the activity will impose on the development footprint on the approved site as contemplated in the accepted scoping report through the life of the activity; identify suitable measures to avoid, manage or mitigate identified impacts; and identify residual risks that need to be managed and monitored. The process and findings of the EIA are reported on in the draft EIA Report. Once the public participation process has been concluded, the draft report will be revised taking into consideration I&APs’ comments. The Final EIA Report will then be submitted to DEFF for consideration, and a decision either to grant or refuse environmental authorisation will be made. All registered I&APs will be notified of this decision and their opportunity to appeal. The following issues and potential impacts have been identified and assessed in respect of the various alternatives in the EIA: . Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Carrier, Powership and FSRU o Disturbance to marine habitat; o Disturbance to the sediment from mooring infrastructure; o Reduction in ambient air quality from increased atmospheric emissions; o Gas supply; o Safety risk from potential leakage of LNG; o Safety risk of storage of NG within the Port; o Increase in noise pollution; o Change in water temperature o Provision of additional electricity; o Contributions to climate change; ii o Marine traffic congestion and accidents; o Visual Impact. Gas Pipeline o Disturbance to marine habitat; o Potential leakage of LNG; o Increase in noise pollution; o Disturbance to coastal dunes. Transmission Lines and Lattice Towers / Monopoles o Clearance of indigenous vegetation o Disturbance to the terrestrial ecosystem; o Loss of biodiversity; o Altered hydrology; o Increase in noise pollution; o Change in hydropedological processes; o Destruction of wetlands, watercourses, estuarine areas; o Destruction of cultural heritage and palaeontological resources; o Disturbance to properties and existing services; o Provision of additional electricity; o Visual Impact The assessment was conducted with specialist input, and includes the identification of mitigation measures and an evaluation of their effectiveness. These assessment findings are used to determine the preferred alternative development footprint and provides the basis for the EAP’s opinion as to whether the proposed activity should be authorised or not, and if so, the conditions that should be made in respect of such authorisation. Should authorisation be granted, the applicant will need to comply with the Environmental Management Programme (EMPr) when implementing the project, which contains inter alia the proposed impact assessment outcomes and actions (mitigation measures) and monitoring and auditing requirements. For ease of reference: The EIA process, methodology and findings are contained in Chapter 8. The specialist reports are