NERSA publishes rules allowing SA to have multiple electricity producers
Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, speaking at a media briefing outlining the rules for third party energy supply, said that these rules aimed to ensure that generators and consumers had fair and equitable access to distribution networks.
FILE: The National Energy Regulator of South Africa is hosting public hearings on Eskom. Picture: EWN/Ntuthuzelo Nene
JOHANNESBURG - The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) has published rules that will allow the country to have multiple producers of electricity.
The implementation of the rules for third party transportation of energy are said to create healthy competition, which will allow consumers to choose cheaper options.
The rules were initially published in 2012 but have been revised to reflect the current energy sector developments.
Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, speaking at a media briefing outlining the rules for third-party energy supply, said that these rules aimed to ensure that generators and consumers had fair and equitable access to distribution networks.
He said the competition would force Eskom to bring down its prices.
"Eskom, as our dominant player, has to be efficient because if it's not efficient and someone and is able to produce the electricity cheaper, your major users of electricity will abandon Eskom and will go to someone cheaper."
Ramokgopa said that in order to stay in the competition, Eskom would invest in research and work on not raising prices exponentially.
Meanwhile, NERSA will be responsible for implementing tariffs that reflect cost production, transmission and distribution of the multiple producers of electricity.
Ramokgopa said that this would allow the process of providing electricity to be fair and equitable.
He added that NERSA would be tasked with combing through details of the actual cost of the generation of energy and the cost of providing infrastructure to distribute electricity.
Ramokgopa said that this must also balance the interests of the customers and licensees.
"That's why we call this thing unbundling. We need to have sight to each and every component of the electricity complex so that the inefficiencies gets to be allocated to the other side, and those that are inefficient, they must be punished and those that are efficient must be rewarded."