ENERGY SERVICES: MIR 2021

The South African energy services market is expanding, driven by rising electricity costs, energy insecurity, and falling technology prices. The market is divided into small-scale embedded generation (SSEG), energy storage, and energy efficiency, with a total available market estimated at R131 billion by 2035. While rooftop solar PV is the dominant SSEG technology, energy storage is emerging as a critical tool for resilience against load shedding. Energy efficiency faced contractions during COVID-19 lockdowns but retains significant untapped potential. The report identifies emerging opportunities such as Solar Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), behind-the-meter battery storage, and smart metering, while highlighting the role of the Western Cape as a regional hub for green economy investment.

• The total available South African energy services market, comprising small-scale embedded generation, energy storage, and energy efficiency, is valued at approximately R131 billion by 2035.
• The small-scale embedded generation (SSEG) market, dominated by rooftop solar PV, is expected to reach a total capacity of 7.5 GW by 2035 with an estimated market value of R75 billion.
• The energy storage market is projected to grow to approximately R31 billion with 6.5 GWh of installed energy capacity by 2030, driven by the need for resilience against load shedding.
• The energy efficiency market is estimated to reach approximately R21 billion by 2035, although it was the segment most negatively impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns.
• Five primary factors are driving the growth of the energy services market: above-inflation electricity price increases, national energy insecurity, decreasing technology costs, supportive policies and regulations, and adapted finance options.
• Emerging opportunities in the SSEG sector include the diversification of rooftop PV models for commercial and industrial (Candi) sectors, Solar Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), solar PV for energy resellers, and in-house capacity building by property owners.
• Behind-the-meter (BTM) battery storage is an emerging opportunity driven by the high opportunity costs of energy insecurity in commercial, industrial, and agricultural applications.
• In the energy efficiency sector, emerging opportunities include smart metering and demand-side management, as well as aggregated interventions for commercial new builds and retrofits, particularly for water heating.
• Legislative changes, specifically the amendment of Schedule 2 of the Electricity Regulation Act 2006, now exempt power generation facilities under 1 MW from requiring a generation licence, provided they are registered with NERSA.
• The Western Cape is positioned as Africa's green economy hub, offering a critical mass of cleantech companies, professional services, and the Atlantis Special Economic Zone (SEZ) for Green Technologies.

APA

Poorun, A., & Radmore, J. (2021). ENERGY SERVICES: MIR 2021. GreenCape. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Energy_Services_MIR_2021_31_3_21-3.pdf

Chicago

Poorun, Argon, and Jack Radmore. ENERGY SERVICES: MIR 2021. GreenCape, 2021. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Energy_Services_MIR_2021_31_3_21-3.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Poorun |first1=Argon |last2=Radmore |first2=Jack |title=ENERGY SERVICES: MIR 2021 |publisher=GreenCape |date=2021 |url=https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Energy_Services_MIR_2021_31_3_21-3.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{poorun2021energy, author = {Poorun, Argon and Radmore, Jack}, title = {{ENERGY SERVICES: MIR 2021}}, institution = {GreenCape}, year = {2021}, url = {https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Energy_Services_MIR_2021_31_3_21-3.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }