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The positive effects of load shedding suspension and the investment in renewable energy products such as solar panels have resulted in less demand for power. Thanks to the sunlight keeping the lights on.
Different energy stakeholders on Thursday outlined their findings on how the renewable energy supply is doing in the country with load shedding’s suspension.
Many said there is still a demand for renewable energy products. The demand can be attributed to the high cost of electricity and some preparation for the possible return of load shedding.
Andrew Middleton from GoSolr said South Africa is set to add a fifth of Africa’s solar capacity. There has been 350.5MW of rooftop solar capacity that was added in the second quarter of the year.
Due to the investment in renewable energy supply, Eskom’s electricity availability stands at 66%, which happens to be 15% more than at the beginning of the year. “Eskom still supplies around 86% of electricity to South Africans.”
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Thanks to the usage of renewable energy supply, the country will have seen at least a 33.8% increase in electricity prices over the last two years. They expect the demand for renewable energy supply to grow as Eskom plans to ask for an increase of up to 44% from April 2025.
“Price increases come down to three elements – consumption, cost and debt.” With Solar, Middleton believes consumers can save up to 80% on their energy costs. When it comes to the price of electricity, he said government and the private sector can work together to keep the cost low.
Tim Hill from Energy Group said they have noticed that the South African renewable energy market is growing fast.
He is of the view that battery price reductions will accelerate adoption, as there has been a 50% reduction in the last 12 months. However, they have noticed a higher demand for PV.
While Jonty Sacks from Jaltech said solar should be positioned in the market as an energy-saving product. “Energy savings are achieved through low input costs, increased Eskom tariff, and cheap long-term funding.”
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Ross Solomons from GeoTerra Image started his presentation by acknowledging there is a need for reliable statistics on the current use of solar power in the country, especially when it comes to on-the-ground installations.
He noted that most residential solar installations in urban areas fall into the Neighbourhood Lifestyle Index (NLI) 7 to 10. While residential solar geysers are highly prevalent in low-cost housing areas that fall into NLI 1 to 4.
Alastair Campbell from Vantage GreenX’s presentation was based on the outlook for solar PV and battery storage from a banker’s take.
There are three issues that are shaping the future of Solar PV and Battery Energy storage in the country.
The first one is the cost of electricity. “Material increases in the cost of electricity is forcing energy users to find alternative sources of new generation.”
Followed by the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, he said this is something that South Africa cannot afford to ignore as 35% of all of its exports go to Europe The third issue is National Treasury Guarantees.
“The inability of National Treasury to continue providing sovereign guarantees to power purchase agreement procured through the Independent Power Producer (IPP) office, is inadvertently fast-tracking the roll-out of private trading platforms.”
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