Celebrating a 30-year relationship with RSSC Mhlume

Not many companies can boast a client relationship that goes back over 30 years. The Royal Swaziland Sugar Corporation (RSSC), has been a client of WD Power’s since our inception in 1983.

Notwithstanding different role players and shifting client needs throughout the years, WD Power continued to provide reliable support to RSSC, specifically in annually minimising on-site downtime of rotating turbomachinery, a service which is normally carried out during the seasonal off-crop period.  This service comprises of primarily steam turbines and all the ancillary equipment associated to the turbines.

Milestone projects

Apart from the recurring annual off-crop maintenance, WD Power and RSSC jointly undertook many successful larger projects, including the following milestone projects:
In 1998, WD Power was appointed to relocate turbines to Mhlume Mill’s newly built larger power station. This involved the relocation of the 3MW steam turbo alternator set, a 7.5MW Allen steam turbo alternator set, as well as two medium speed diesel engines.  locate a used 8 MW TA set for the Mhlume Mill to increase the power station output which were installed towards the end of 1999.  WD Power sourced a barely used Siemens set in Finland, which was then installed in the mill power station.  When the 8 MW rotor bent during an operational problem in 2001, WD Power removed and managed to straighten the rotor in our workshop before returning it to service, with no further problems experienced since.

Our secret to customer loyalty

We work hard to earn our clients’ trust by exceeding their expectations as much as possible, including:

• Superior customer support,
• Technical excellence, and
• Customising our offerings to satisfy the unique needs of each customer.

Apart from off-crop maintenance and bigger project milestones, WD Power also assists RSSC with problem identification, spares procurement and recommendations to improve equipment availability.

As a result, a trusted relationship was formed between the companies – standing the test of time.  Mhlume is one of our longest standing clients and we look forward to continuing our relationship for many years to come.

About Mhlume Mill

Mhlume Mill was commissioned in 1960 to produce 90 tons of cane per hour.  In 2001 Mhlume Sugar Company was merged into the Royal Swaziland Sugar Corporation and expanded as a major player in the sugar industry, with production of more than 400,000 tons of sugar and more than 30,000 litres of ethanol annually.