Eskom’s Kendal Power Station Exceedances of Applicable Atmospheric Emission License Limit Values for Particulate Matter from April 2016 to March 2020

A technical review by Dr. Ranajit Sahu for the Centre for Environmental Rights analyzing particulate matter (PM) emissions at Eskom’s Kendal Power Station from April 2016 to March 2020. The report finds thousands of exceedances of the Atmospheric Emission License (AEL) limit, noting a significant increase in frequency starting in April 2018 and criticizing the failure of electrostatic precipitators and the quality of Eskom's emissions reporting.

• Between April 2016 and March 2020, Kendal Power Station recorded 2,851 exceedances of its Atmospheric Emission License (AEL) limit for average daily particulate matter (PM) emissions, which is set at 100 mg/Nm3. The station exceeded this limit in 96% of the reported months (46 out of 48), and in every reported month from 2018 through 2020.
• PM emission exceedances increased in frequency by three times starting in April 2018 and remained at these higher levels through March 2020. January 2020 was identified as the month with the highest number of exceedances, totaling 151.
• A significant portion of PM exceedances reached levels many times higher than the legal limit. In 2019, 84% of exceedances were at least twice the limit, 36% were four times the limit, and 10% were ten times the limit. In 2018, 2% of exceedances reached 25 times the AEL limit, with October 2018 seeing 16 days where emissions reached or exceeded 2,500 mg/Nm3.
• The report concludes that the electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) at all units are not functioning properly, even after purported maintenance. For instance, in October 2018, Unit 3's ESP was reportedly used 89% of the time, yet emissions exceeded 2,500 mg/Nm3 on 16 days of the month.
• The analysis identified issues with Eskom's reporting, including the underreporting of 134 PM exceedances in Table 6.2 of reports from August to December 2019. Additionally, from August 2019 to March 2020, no exceedances were marked as 'Contravention', with all instead coded as 'Grace' or 'Section 30' without sufficient explanation.
• The author recommends that Kendal Power Station either be shut down or rapidly retrofitted with fabric filters at all six units. Such retrofitting would allow the plant to meet its AEL limits and the World Bank recommended limit of 25 mg/Nm3 for large new power plants in degraded airsheds.

APA

Sahu, R. (. (2020). Eskom’s Kendal Power Station Exceedances of Applicable Atmospheric Emission License Limit Values for Particulate Matter from April 2016 to March 2020. Centre for Environmental Rights. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Annexure-A2.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Sahu, Ranajit (Ron). Eskom’s Kendal Power Station Exceedances of Applicable Atmospheric Emission License Limit Values for Particulate Matter from April 2016 to March 2020. Centre for Environmental Rights, 2020. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Annexure-A2.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sahu |first1=Ranajit (Ron) |title=Eskom’s Kendal Power Station Exceedances of Applicable Atmospheric Emission License Limit Values for Particulate Matter from April 2016 to March 2020 |publisher=Centre for Environmental Rights |date=12 May 2020 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Annexure-A2.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sahu2020eskoms, author = {Sahu, Ranajit (Ron)}, title = {{Eskom’s Kendal Power Station Exceedances of Applicable Atmospheric Emission License Limit Values for Particulate Matter from April 2016 to March 2020}}, institution = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2020}, month = may, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Annexure-A2.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }