Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa May 2013 | Page 53
COMMERCIAL
the tariff structure for poorer households
that use less electricity. If you look at the
NERSA decision, you will notice that there
are different increases for different categories
of customers so that, for example, the poorest
households face a much lower increase than
the average.
In a recent article the massive theft of
electricity was raised as a contributing factor to
price rises, how true is this? And what is Eskom
doing to stop electricity theft? Who absorbs the
cost of the electricity theft?
Andrew: There’s different kinds of electricity
theft. There’s illegal connections, there’s metre
tampering and there’s fraudulent vending
machines. Because it’s illegal connections, it’s an
opportunity cost in economic terms to Eskom
and municipalities who provide electricity to
both business and the residential sector across the
country. It’s not a cost that Eskom directly pays if
someone illegally connects, it’s revenue we do not
get from those customers.
Eskom has Operation Khanyisa to try and
combat electricity theft and works with law
enforcement agencies to prosecute any individuals
involved in electricity theft.
In which other ways can businesses and
households alike cut consumption and costs?
Andrew: Businesses can make a huge contribution
to saving electricity by adopting a few simple
measures.
•
•
•
•
•
The first step is to appoint an energy manager
for each office building to monitor electricity
usage and identify savings opportunities.
Install motion sensors for meeting rooms and
security lighting. Also, reduce lighting levels in
parking areas to the minimum legal
requirement during the day while turning off
at night after the building lights have been
turned off.
As far as climate control is concerned, maintain
a difference of not more than 10° Celcius
between inside and outside building.
Turn on extraction fans at around 4am to draw
cold outside air through t he building to cool
down the structure, and close window blinds to
shade rooms from direct sunlight.
An important savings tip for the office is to
not leave computers, copiers, printers and fax
machines on standby, as they continue to use
electricity even whilst on standby.
www.reimag.co.za
Homeowners can save up to 10% on their
electricity bills without spending a cent.
• Switch off lights in unoccupied rooms.
• Dress for the weather – it will help you
postpone switching on a space heater.
• When you do switch it on, heat only the room
you are in.
• Seal gaps around windows and draught-proof
wall cavities throughout your home.
• Warm your bed with an electric blanket for one
hour; switch off when you get in.
• Alternatively, use a hot water bottle to keep
your bed warm.
• Don’t use under-floor heating – it’s highly
energy intensive.
• Switch off appliances at the power point when
you’ve finished using them.
• Use slow cookers to prepare stews and oxtail;
microwaves are best for small-volume winter
meals.
• Boil only enough water for the number of cups
of hot drinks you are preparing.
• Shower; don’t bathe – keep it hot and short.
• Limit filtering your pool to only once every 24
hours in winter.
Where will renewable energy go over the next
few years in both business and households?
Andrew: Showcasing and demonstrating the
potential of solar energy is crucial to shifting
mindsets and driving wider spread adoption of
renewable energy, as it is a relatively uncharted
field in South Africa.
The a commercial setting, depending on the
electricity tariff and the type of solar PV panels
installed the payback period is around nine years.
Since the approval of the pilot solar PV
project and the inclusion of renewable energy
solutions as part of the IDM programme 47
project proposal have been submitted, of which
2 have been contracted and are currently in
implementation. The project proposals have been
received from all business sectors which includes;
26 commercial , 12 agricultural and 9 industrial
and mining proposals.
The Lincoln on Lake Project, a mix-use
commercial building in Umhlanga Ridge KZN,
was implemented in 2011 as a “proof of concept”
project in partnership Eskom, Suntech, Hudu
Solar and Growthpoint Properties. The project
consisted of 234PV solar panels to generate about
238kWh of electricity per day, to meet the energy
requirements. Growthpoint Properties has since
been awarded a 4-star Green Star SA rating
building (one of just a few in SA), while small
scale renewable has be included by National
Energy Regulator of South Africa as part of the
Eskom IDM business rebate programme.
Eskom Holdings has also embarked on the solar
PV journey by installing PV solution for traffic
lights and building requirements at the head office
MegaWatt Park and two power stations.
On the residential side, the Eskom IDM offer
does not include solar PV system, only solar
thermal system. The rebate programme has
provided an incentive for the installation of solar
water heating systems; the programme reduces
homeowners’ capital outlay when replacing energy
intensive electrical element geysers with solar
water heating systems.
In the case of high-pressure solar water heating
systems, less than 200 units per month were
installed at inception of the programme; this
number has since jumped to a peak of over 6000
units per month.
The installation of low-pressure solar water
heating systems developed into a mass-roll
programme due to the fact that the rebate covered
most of the installation costs.
In total for both LP and HP, over 329 000 units
have been installed to date.
It is important to note that the rebate
programme on low-pressure solar water heating
systems has ended; no new registrations were
accepted beyond Thursday, 28 February 2013 and
all approved installations must be completed by
Friday, 31 May 2013.
The high pressure solar water heating rebate
was based on:
• local manufactured systems received a high
rebate value
• the electricity saving performance of the system
(Q-factor);
• the system needs to be SABS-approved
• the household needs to purchase the system
from an accredited supplier participating
in the Eskom solar water heating programme
and registered on the Eskom IDM database
www.eskom.co.za/idm.
RESOURCES
IDM, Eskom
May 2013 SA Real Estate Investor
51