Whose power is it anyway? eMthanjeni Local Municipality and renewable energy

This report by Thina Nzo examines the failure of the Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement (REIPPP) programme to deliver tangible socioeconomic benefits to the eMthanjeni Local Municipality and its host communities, arguing that the current centralised policymaking approach reproduces structural disempowerment.

• The eMthanjeni Local Municipality faced significant financial distress and service interruptions, including a debt of R106 million to Eskom and a two-day power cut during lockdown, which required a R19 million payment for reconnection. This has led to public protests and questions regarding why the municipality cannot negotiate cheaper electricity directly from nearby Independent Power Producers (IPPs).
• Current mechanisms for redistributing resources to host communities, specifically IPP community trusts and socioeconomic development (SED) contributions, have failed to produce sustainable socioeconomic development. These outcomes do not align with the energy democracy agenda, which seeks fair energy access and community-owned systems that provide stable employment and local economic transformation.
• The REIPPP programme's centralised policymaking and economic path-dependency in spatial development contribute to the structural disempowerment and marginalisation of rural municipalities within the policymaking process.

APA

Nzo, T. (2021). Whose power is it anyway? eMthanjeni Local Municipality and renewable energy. Public Affairs Research Institute. https://pari.org.za/whose-power-is-it-anyway-emthanjeni-local-municipality-and-renewable-energy/

Chicago

Nzo, Thina. Whose power is it anyway? eMthanjeni Local Municipality and renewable energy. Public Affairs Research Institute, 2021. https://pari.org.za/whose-power-is-it-anyway-emthanjeni-local-municipality-and-renewable-energy/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Nzo |first1=Thina |title=Whose power is it anyway? eMthanjeni Local Municipality and renewable energy |publisher=Public Affairs Research Institute |date=10 September 2021 |url=https://pari.org.za/whose-power-is-it-anyway-emthanjeni-local-municipality-and-renewable-energy/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{nzo2021whose, author = {Nzo, Thina}, title = {{Whose power is it anyway? eMthanjeni Local Municipality and renewable energy}}, institution = {Public Affairs Research Institute}, year = {2021}, month = sep, url = {https://pari.org.za/whose-power-is-it-anyway-emthanjeni-local-municipality-and-renewable-energy/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }