Patrice Motsepe's African Rainbow Energy takes majority control of SOLA Group in 1.2 billion dollars renewables deal

Patrice Motsepe is doubling down on power. The South African billionaire's African Rainbow Energy has lifted its stake in SOLA Group from 41% to 83%, taking majority control of a corporate-serving renewables business with an R20 billion-plus ($1.2 billion-plus) portfolio and turning ARE into one of the country's largest independently owned energy companies.

SOLA already sits at the top of South Africa's corporate renewables market. The company supplies power directly to businesses through on-site solar projects and Eskom's wheeling program, which lets electricity generated in one location move across the national grid to a customer somewhere else. SOLA's order book runs to 1,100 megawatt-peak of solar photovoltaic capacity and 730 megawatt-hours of battery storage, all either running or under construction.

The client list reads like a roll call of South African industry. Sasol, Eskom, Tronox, Aspen, AB InBev, Woolworths, Pick n Pay, Clicks Group, Mr Price Group and Coca-Cola Beverages Africa take power from SOLA. Redefine, Growthpoint, Resilient REIT and Vukile sit on the same list, alongside Old Mutual and Netcare. That mix gives Motsepe's energy arm a direct stake in the part of the South African economy most exposed to load shedding for the past decade.

The combined ARE portfolio now totals around 2,000 megawatts across renewables and storage, with roughly 1.5 gigawatts operational and another 500 megawatts under construction. The numbers put ARE in the top tier of corporate independent power producers and give it scale to bid on utility-grade deals that Eskom and the National Treasury are pushing private capital to underwrite.

Motsepe framed the acquisition as a long-game play. "This acquisition positions African Rainbow Energy as one of the largest and most competitive, independently owned energy businesses in South Africa," he said. ARE chief executive Brian Dames credited the five-year partnership with SOLA for the underlying growth, with the next phase focused on scaling clean energy supply to corporates.

SOLA's founders are stepping back without selling out. Simon Haw, Chris Haw and Dom Chennells will stay on as non-executive directors and shareholders while pulling out of executive roles. Dom Wills returns as group chief executive, a role he last held between 2017 and 2024, with the rest of the management team carrying over.

The deal slots into Motsepe's broader playbook. African Rainbow Minerals runs the mining side, African Rainbow Capital handles financial services and ARE now anchors the energy footprint. The pieces look less like separate bets and more like one infrastructure platform.