- Enpower Trading has been granted an electricity Import/Export licence by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA which enables cross-border transactions within the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
- Enpower is one of the first South African private companies to secure an Import/Export licence.
- The licence complements Enpower Trading’s existing domestic electricity trading licence granted in February 2022.
By facilitating electricity imports during domestic shortages, the company aims to minimise renewable energy curtailment and ease pressure on South Africa’s grid whilst generating transmission and distribution fees. This enhances energy security, supports IPPs (Independent Power Producers) through export opportunities, and attracts investment into the region’s generation sector.
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“Cross-border trading is a critical lever for improving supply reliability and affordability,” said James Beatty, CEO of Enpower Trading. “We’re proud to lead the way toward a flexible, secure, and sustainable energy future with NERSA’s support.”
Enpower Trading’s regional strategy is bolstered by a commercial agreement with Enterprise Power DRC (EPDRC), a key player in the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP). EPDRC’s Kalumbila-Kolwezi 330KV Interconnector Project, linking Zambia and the DRC, will unlock up to 700 MW of cross-border trading capacity, aligning with Enpower Trading’s goal of fostering efficient and responsible energy exchange in SADC.
The licence positions Enpower Trading to deliver clean, competitively priced electricity from independent producers and contribute to a more integrated regional power market, supporting South Africa’s energy transition through innovation and collaboration
Eskom pushes back on IPP’s granted trading licences
Following Nersa’s publication of the reasons for its decisions, Eskom has launched an application in the Gauteng Division of the High Court to have the granting of five trading and one import/export licence reviewed and set aside.
Eskom argues that trading licences were approved without the necessary trading rules for the industry being developed, a point acknowledged by the Regulator members during their deliberations. “The decision by the Regulator, according to Eskom, infringes upon and breaches NERSA’s own rules and the licences issued to Eskom by NERSA” said Eskom in a statement.
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“Eskom disagrees with this decision and has instructed its attorneys to initiate legal proceedings in the High Court. Eskom, like all other participants in the electricity industry, operates based on established rules and subscribes to a rule-based transition. However, this adherence to the rules has been misinterpreted as anti-competitive behaviour, which Eskom firmly denies,” the utility adds.
Eskom adds that they remain committed to accelerating the reform of the rules to enable a competitive energy market. “As presented during the public hearing, Eskom will collaborate with various stakeholders to ensure that a competitive market is developed through a consultative legal framework. Eskom advocates for a dynamic electricity market that ensures energy security, access and affordability, fosters growth, and delivers long-term benefits for South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa,” the utility concludes.”
The respondents are Nersa and the five licensees: Green Electron Market, CBI Electric Apollo, GreenCo Power Services, Discovery Green and Noa Group Trading.
Eskom’s argument
In an affidavit in support of the application, Eskom senior manager for legal matters Mohlago Masekela says the licensing decisions “form the beginning of a fundamental change of policy by Nersa that has not been the subject of public consultation and the implications of which appear not to have been explored by Nersa.”
According to Masekela it will “upend the entire landscape of electricity provision in this country, without taking meaningful steps to understand the consequences before doing so.
“Under the guise of promoting competition and labouring under material misapprehensions about the law and the facts, Nersa has allowed a free-for-all in which traders are allowed to poach the best of Eskom’s customers without carrying any of the redistributive obligations that the tariffs paid by those customers to Eskom enable Eskom to discharge.”
Eskom contends that its distribution licences and those of municipalities, grant them the exclusive right to distribute and trade in electricity in the licensed distribution areas. It relies on Nersa’s distribution rules that prohibit two or more distributors to operate in the same area.
According to the utility, no rules have ever been made to deal with electricity trading as a separate licensed activity. Although Nersa has acknowledged the need for such rules and has embarked on a process to finalise it, it proceeded to approve trading licences in the meantime. This, Eskom states, is irrational.
Eskom further suggests that the matter of the R100 billion-odd arrear municipal debt must be dealt with in the trading rules by restricting traders from operating in defaulting areas or establishing a financial clearing house that prioritises the payment of Eskom arrears before disbursing revenue to traders.
It suggests that the cross-subsidisation regime should be preserved, with traders being required to contribute to a subsidy pool or municipal support levy.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
