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Cape Town - Eskom is bailing out of the solar water heater rebate programme warning the industry that it would process claims for rebates only if the equipment was installed on or before January 31.
While the Treasury has always allocated a budget for the programme to the energy department, Eskom has until now been the implementing agent. Now Eskom says this role is being handed back to the department.
Fin24's Gareth van Zyl asked Eskom at their systems update meeting on Thursday whether they would not consider delaying the handover, due to the issues with the grid. However, Eskom spokesperson Andrew Etzinger said it was not their programme in the first place.
READ: Ramaphosa visits Eskom's war room
"It is funded by the Energy Department and Eskom has been helping with administration," he said. "So, the department is taking over the administration thereof."
Smooth transfer questioned
Opposition energy shadow minister Lance Greyling said he had written a letter to Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson requesting that she confirm on record that the department of energy had plans and processes in place to allow the smooth transition of the solar water heater rebate programme from Eskom to the DoE.
Eskom suggested in the letter that the energy department had agreed that the funding, management and implementation of the programme would from February 1 be managed by the energy department.
While it is general knowledge that Eskom is facing a financial crisis owing to the high costs of running generators on diesel in recent months, Greyling said Eskom should withdraw its notice to withdraw from the programme as it put thousands of jobs at risk.
“Eskom now risks creating a major disruption in the solar water heater industry with its woefully inadequate notice of withdrawing from the programme,” said Greyling.
He has not yet received a reply from the energy minister about the road forward. “If a new rebate programme does not start running immediately after Eskom withdraws, there will be a complete stop in installation and many companies and thousands of employees will be out of business and work,” he charged.
Questions to the energy department’s spokespeople also had not elicited replies at the time of writing.
Solar water industry saw massive growth
Greyling said the solar water heater industry “should have seen massive growth over the past five years given the importance of [these] heaters in reducing energy demand on the grid. Instead, the government has fallen woefully short of its target of installing one million solar water heaters by 2014.
Since its inception in 2008, the rebate programme has subsidised 417 000 solar water heater installations – up to 30 September 2014, less than half of the energy department’s target.
Greyling said there had been a massive slowdown in delivery of the programme because government had imposed an 18 month moratorium – only recently lifted – on the installation of low pressure solar water heaters. “This has had a devastating effect on this industry,” charged Greyling.
“The industry is also facing a precarious financial state due to the uncertainty given to the market by government’s ever changing policies,” said Greyling.
Eskom supports solar
On the Eskom website, it noted that the solar water heater systems reduced electricity demand in residential areas and thus pressure on the electrical grid in certain areas “resulting in a more stable power supply and reducing the amount of energy losss through the transmission and distribution of electricity. This is just another way that solar energy can help light up South Africa."
"The programme has also brought hot water to people who never had it before thus changing their lives for the better in line with government’s promise of a better life for all.”
Eskom noted that between 30 and 50% of domestic electricity bills were generated by energy intensive elements used to heat water. Thus these elements which form the back up heating option in solar systems “have an effect on energy saving”.
Eskom itself said that the number of suppliers of the solar water heaters had grown from “a mere” 20 to 400 in 2011.
While the Treasury has always allocated a budget for the programme to the energy department, Eskom has until now been the implementing agent. Now Eskom says this role is being handed back to the department.
Fin24's Gareth van Zyl asked Eskom at their systems update meeting on Thursday whether they would not consider delaying the handover, due to the issues with the grid. However, Eskom spokesperson Andrew Etzinger said it was not their programme in the first place.
READ: Ramaphosa visits Eskom's war room
"It is funded by the Energy Department and Eskom has been helping with administration," he said. "So, the department is taking over the administration thereof."
Smooth transfer questioned
Opposition energy shadow minister Lance Greyling said he had written a letter to Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson requesting that she confirm on record that the department of energy had plans and processes in place to allow the smooth transition of the solar water heater rebate programme from Eskom to the DoE.
Eskom suggested in the letter that the energy department had agreed that the funding, management and implementation of the programme would from February 1 be managed by the energy department.
While it is general knowledge that Eskom is facing a financial crisis owing to the high costs of running generators on diesel in recent months, Greyling said Eskom should withdraw its notice to withdraw from the programme as it put thousands of jobs at risk.
“Eskom now risks creating a major disruption in the solar water heater industry with its woefully inadequate notice of withdrawing from the programme,” said Greyling.
He has not yet received a reply from the energy minister about the road forward. “If a new rebate programme does not start running immediately after Eskom withdraws, there will be a complete stop in installation and many companies and thousands of employees will be out of business and work,” he charged.
Questions to the energy department’s spokespeople also had not elicited replies at the time of writing.
Solar water industry saw massive growth
Greyling said the solar water heater industry “should have seen massive growth over the past five years given the importance of [these] heaters in reducing energy demand on the grid. Instead, the government has fallen woefully short of its target of installing one million solar water heaters by 2014.
Since its inception in 2008, the rebate programme has subsidised 417 000 solar water heater installations – up to 30 September 2014, less than half of the energy department’s target.
Greyling said there had been a massive slowdown in delivery of the programme because government had imposed an 18 month moratorium – only recently lifted – on the installation of low pressure solar water heaters. “This has had a devastating effect on this industry,” charged Greyling.
“The industry is also facing a precarious financial state due to the uncertainty given to the market by government’s ever changing policies,” said Greyling.
Eskom supports solar
On the Eskom website, it noted that the solar water heater systems reduced electricity demand in residential areas and thus pressure on the electrical grid in certain areas “resulting in a more stable power supply and reducing the amount of energy losss through the transmission and distribution of electricity. This is just another way that solar energy can help light up South Africa."
"The programme has also brought hot water to people who never had it before thus changing their lives for the better in line with government’s promise of a better life for all.”
Eskom noted that between 30 and 50% of domestic electricity bills were generated by energy intensive elements used to heat water. Thus these elements which form the back up heating option in solar systems “have an effect on energy saving”.
Eskom itself said that the number of suppliers of the solar water heaters had grown from “a mere” 20 to 400 in 2011.
