South Africa Turns Old Power Plant Into Green Jobs Hub

In Mpumalanga, South Africa, the Grootvlei Power Station isn't shutting down and leaving a community behind. Instead, it's transforming into something completely new: a cutting-edge horticulture center that trains local farmers and creates sustainable jobs.

Eskom, South Africa's power utility, partnered with the Netherlands government and local authorities to launch the Grootvlei Climate Smart Horticulture Centre this month. The center represents a bold answer to a question facing communities worldwide: what happens to workers and towns when coal plants close?

Eight residents from nearby Dipaleseng Municipality are already training as greenhouse facilitators. Starting in April 2026, 75 local agripreneurs will begin an intensive development program designed to turn them into successful farmers and business owners.

The math gets even more promising from there. Each agripreneur is expected to hire additional community members, creating a ripple of employment that could generate substantial sustainable jobs by 2030.

The project focuses on practical skills rather than massive commercial operations right now. Trainees learn climate-smart growing techniques, value-chain development, and how to run profitable small farms in greenhouses built on repurposed power station land.

The Ripple Effect

This initiative shows how energy transition can create opportunity instead of devastation. For decades, communities near coal plants faced an impossible choice: jobs or the environment. The Grootvlei project proves that's a false dilemma.

Eskom Board Chairperson Mteto Nyati called it an exciting example of stakeholders working together to protect livelihoods during South Africa's shift to a lower-carbon economy. The success depends on unprecedented cooperation between a state utility, international partners, and local government.

The Netherlands brought significant funding and expertise to the table. The Mpumalanga provincial government and Dipaleseng Local Municipality provided local support and infrastructure. Together, they're building something that could serve as a blueprint for other communities facing similar transitions.

Looking ahead, Eskom plans to expand the center into a full agri-economic hub. The vision includes integrated agriculture, advanced skills training, logistics operations, and increasing private sector involvement.

South Africa's energy transition isn't just about swapping coal for solar panels anymore. It's about reimagining entire local economies, giving land new purpose, and ensuring the people who powered the nation for generations aren't left behind in the shift to clean energy.