Eskom will introduce a new plan to deal with loadshedding

Virtual wheeling will make it possible for industrial and commercial customers connected to municipal and Eskom networks to purchase electricity. Purchase from the expanding network of electricity traders authorized by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa).

According to energy experts Chris Yellend and Linsey Dyer, power pricing is anticipated to become more logical and market-driven.

ALSO READ: WATCH: Municipalities owe Eskom over R60 billion [VIDEO]

Additionally, diversification should result in a plentiful and dependable supply of electricity.
The current grid has an impact on the supply of energy since Eskom levies fees for utilizing its network and credits the offtaker’s account on a time-of-use basis for the electricity provided by the IPP.

“The tenures of traditional one-to-one wheeling agreements are normally 20 years, which might be a burdensome responsibility for the off-taker and prevent the uptake of wheeling arrangements,” according to the experts.

Additionally, Eskom and the off-taker must revise their electricity supply agreement to take wheeling credits into account. This is a labor-intensive, pricey, and sometimes time-consuming process

HOW VIRTUAL WHEELING WILL HELP ESKOM?

A standard electricity supply bill from the electricity distributor (Eskom or the municipality) and a separate rebate from the trader are both received by the client in a virtual wheeling arrangement. As a result, the municipal electricity distributor won’t see a decline in its revenue.

ALSO READ: ‘ESKOM infrastructure in a dismal state,’ says minister

Furthermore, there is no need to alter the customer’s agreement with the municipal energy supply, billing system, or meter. The trader will nevertheless need to set up a time-of-use (TOU) meter at the client’s location.
Wheeling transactions are now easier to monitor because of the new approach, which separates it from the standard retail billing procedure.

THE ADVANTAGES:

Virtual wheeling will shield the client from any Eskom rises in the price of electricity.

ALSO READ: the Western Cape community to address energy concerns

Also virtual wheeling will enable the client to drastically shorten the terms of a PPA.

“Virtual wheeling has a knock-on effect of increasing security of supply and reducing load shedding caused by energy shortages,” the experts said.

ALSO READ: Eskom runs Electricity Safety Month to Save Lives

This is because it allows IPPs to invest in new generation capacity without incurring any costs to Eskom or the fiscus and by lowering barriers to the wheeling of power.