Eskom’s recovery has moved South Africa’s energy debate past keeping the lights on. Government now wants energy efficiency experts in the room before costs lock in.
That was the message from Subesh Pillay, Chief of Staff to the Minister of Electricity and Energy, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa. He delivered the minister’s address at the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) Africa conference in Cape Town on 28 October 2026.
From loadshedding to strategy
Pillay reminded delegates that only three or four years ago, South Africa faced Stage 6 loadshedding “on a good day”. Eskom’s generation recovery plan has since restored operating discipline.
Eskom reported year-to-date energy availability of 68.1% on 23 October, against about 50% in early 2022/23. Diesel spending is R4.8 billion lower than in the corresponding period.
“The conversation now is being refocused around the more strategic elements,” Pillay said. However, the next phase is harder. It means connecting generation to demand, securing fuel and infrastructure, and avoiding transmission, distribution and financing becoming the new constraints. Today, electricity is being curtailed while potential customers cannot get network access.
Global events sharpen the stakes. Bill Kent, CEO of AEE, described the disruption around the Strait of Hormuz as part of the largest energy crisis the world has experienced. “What is becoming the number one priority globally is energy reliability and energy security,” he said.
A quad, not a trilemma
The ministry has reframed the energy trilemma of security, affordability and sustainability as a “quad”. The fourth element is transformation: using energy investment to broaden participation, including on gender and new entrants.
Coal, nuclear, renewables, storage and gas all have roles, Pillay said, with different delivery timelines. The department is working to sequence them, with replacement capacity in place as existing plants retire.
Demand should no longer be treated solely as a forecast to which the rest of the industry must respond.
Subesh Pillay
Telling savings from distress
Pillay drew a sharp line between genuine efficiency and economic pain.
“We should be deeply concerned when electricity consumption falls because productive capacity is closed, or families can simply not afford to use the energy,” he said. “Efficiency policy must distinguish this distress from genuine improvements to energy productivity.”
Faith Mkhacwa, General Manager for Energy Efficiency and Demand Side Management at the South African National Energy Development Institute (SANEDI), quantified the household burden. Many South Africans spend up to 20% of their disposable income on electricity or alternatives.
Tariff design, Pillay said, must balance cost recovery, industrial competitiveness and support for indigent households. “Passing inefficiency through to customers is incompatible with that responsibility.”
Demand is not just a forecast
The ministry wants energy efficiency to inform the R2.3 trillion investment programme in the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). “Demand should no longer be treated solely as a forecast to which the rest of the industry must respond,” Pillay said.
Industrial demand that can shift into periods of available supply can complement storage. Permanent gains in energy productivity can reduce the capacity needed for growth. “Decisions made at design stage can determine energy costs for decades to come,” he added.
South Africa already has evidence. The National Cleaner Production Centre (NCPC) has reported 6.5TWh of cumulative savings across more than 450 companies, worth about R5.3 billion and 6.4 million tonnes of avoided emissions.
Public entities, often exempted, must be included: “data tells us that those are energy vampires.”
Faith Mkhacwa
Africa’s first fuel
Speakers from across the continent backed the case. Shameela Soobramoney, CEO of the National Business Initiative (NBI), cited International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that more than a third of the emissions reductions needed by 2030 can come from efficiency. Roughly 82% of global reductions between 2010 and 2022 came from efficiency actions.
Fenwicks Musonye, Deputy Director Energy Efficiency, Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (speaking on behalf of the Director General of Kenya’s energy regulator), said a 2021 programme demonstrated savings of 100MW, about 5% of Kenya’s installed capacity at the time.
He framed the goal as four energy
- access,
- affordability,
- acceptability and
- availability.
Efficiency, he added, must run through generation, transmission, distribution and use.
In Nigeria, the problem is supply itself. Ayodeji Dada of Stratagem said the country has about 13GW installed but transmits only 3 to 5.5GW to 230 million people. Efficiency rarely enters the conversation. Yet, he said, “the cheapest form of energy to be generated is the one we have saved.”
Mkhacwa called for speed and scale, saying that pilot projects and demonstrations must grow. Newly harmonised policies must be implemented, not just written, she added. Public entities, often exempted, must be included: “data tells us that those are energy vampires.”
The cost of waiting
Pillay asked the profession to bring proposals government can act on and to be direct about barriers. The industry should “hold both government and industry accountable to a higher standard of performance.” The panel’s closing warning was blunter.
“If you fail to act with absolute urgency, South Africa and the continent will lose industrial competitiveness,” one speaker said, “and our products will carry a premium driven
