2023 ENERGY SERVICES MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT

The 2023 Energy Services Market Intelligence Report by GreenCape analyzes the growth of South Africa's energy services market, driven by load shedding and rising electricity costs. Key opportunities include rooftop solar PV (projected 10 GWp by 2035), battery storage (projected R32.5 billion by 2035), and smart meters (projected R40 billion by 2035). While technology costs are falling and financing is becoming more accessible, the market faces barriers such as port inefficiencies and a shortage of technical skills.

• The South African energy services market is driven by five primary factors: national energy insecurity (load shedding), above-inflation electricity price increases, decreasing technology costs, supportive policies and tariffs, and the availability of relevant finance options.
• The rooftop solar PV market saw an estimated annual added capacity of 600-900 MWp in 2022, with a market value of R7.5 billion. Projections suggest the market will reach a total capacity of 10 GWp by 2035, representing a market value of approximately R100 billion.
• The energy storage market, specifically lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, has a current national market size of R4 billion with 500 MWh of installed capacity. This is expected to grow to approximately R32.5 billion and 6.5 GWh of installed capacity by 2035.
• The energy efficiency (EE) sector is described as sluggish despite a potential annual saving of 120 TWh. However, smart meters represent a significant opportunity, with a projected national market value of approximately R40 billion by 2035, based on 100,000 to 300,000 upgrades per year.
• Electricity tariffs from Eskom increased by 753% between 2007 and 2021, while inflation (CPI) over the same period was 134%, meaning tariffs quadrupled in real money terms over 14 years.
• Port inefficiency in South Africa causes significant lead times for imported energy equipment, sometimes reaching six to nine months. This is attributed to limitations in spatial and operating efficiency, inadequate oversight, and poor coordination between public agencies.
• The cost of diesel generators has become less competitive compared to battery technologies due to a 49% increase in the local price of diesel in 2022, largely caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
• The City of Cape Town (CoCT) has implemented policies to support the energy transition, including allowing commercial and industrial customers with embedded generation to be net consumers and issuing a 60 MW demand response tender for third-party aggregators in October 2022.
• The South African electricity supply is heavily dependent on coal, which accounts for 73% of the generation mix. The energy availability factor (EAF) of the Eskom coal fleet declined from approximately 94% in 2002 to approximately 53% in 2022.

APA

Poorun, A., & Radmore, J. (2023). 2023 ENERGY SERVICES MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT. GreenCape. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ES_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES.pdf

Chicago

Poorun, Argon, and Jack Radmore. 2023 ENERGY SERVICES MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT. GreenCape, 2023. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ES_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Poorun |first1=Argon |last2=Radmore |first2=Jack |title=2023 ENERGY SERVICES MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT |publisher=GreenCape |date=2023 |url=https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ES_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{poorun20232023, author = {Poorun, Argon and Radmore, Jack}, title = {{2023 ENERGY SERVICES MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT}}, institution = {GreenCape}, year = {2023}, url = {https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ES_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }