UN Division for Sustainable Development

Case Study Detail Record

Organization type:	Major Groups

Submitting organization:

Affiliation:	- Business and industry

Initiative Title:	Eskom: Electrification Programme for South Africa

Internet links:	http://www.wbcsd.org/includes/getTarget.asp?type=DocDet&id=606

Scope:

Status:	Ongoing

Timeframe:	Start: End:

Lead Institution:	Eskom

Stakeholders/Partners:	Eskom, South African government and local authorites, South African people, rural unelectrified communities, Shell

Relevent issues:	- Energy and rural development - Energy sector reforms - Increasing access to energy for the poor - Industrial developments impact on poverty and social development - Corporate social responsibility

Objectives/Challenges:

• Provide electricity to South Africa
• Provide off-grid electricity to remote rural areas where costs prevent grid connection
• Foster socio-economic benefits associated with electrification
• Enhance rural development and renewable energy
• Create jobs through FDI in energy-intensive manufacturing and new employment opportunities
• Increase small business development
• Provide access to communications and refrigeration
• Reduce harvesting of firewood and protect biodiversity
• Reduce ambient pollution from biomass burning
• Increase health benefits

Lessons Learned:

• Projects need to be undertaken in a holistic manner
• It is not possible to separate planning and project management – continual re-planning is required, as are targets and technology plans
• A centralized approach for planning is necessary
• Customer knowledge is essential
• Standards must be based on proven pilots with innovation in the pilot phase
• Standards provide building blocks and allow the matching of tariffs and technology to customer requirements
• Tariffs and revenue collection are critical and must tie in to technology and culture
• Non-grid options need to be integrated in a controlled manner

Policy Options:

• Electrify isolated rural communities through off-grid alternate sources of energy such as solar power
• Promote renewable energy
• Support public-private joint ventures in the supply of energy and supporting infrastructure

Summary:

Eskom is South Africa's wholly state-owned electricity utility. It has 24 power stations with a nominal capacity of 40.585 megawatts, and is one of the lowest cost producers of electricity in the world. The company supplies electricity to over three million customers via approximately 350 thousand km of transmission and distribution lines. Eskom has connected 3.2 million homes since the inception of the electrification programme in 1991 with over 90% of urban and 40% of rural areas electrified. To counter costs associated greater distances from the established grid, Eskom partnered with Shell for a joint venture project to install pre-paid solar systems with storage. The solar systems feature four high-efficiency fluorescent lights and an outlet for direct current for television and radio. Local shops are used as outlets for the purchase of pre-paid cards used by local people to install and maintain the system, creating jobs in the communities. The supply of electricity has led to an increase in education and productivity levels and a decrease in harvesting firewood for biomass burning, which has in turn decreased ambient pollution and consequent respiratory diseases, and helped to protect biodiversity.