Southern African Region

Abstract

According to the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and the UN subregion of Southern Africa, there are five countries in Southern Africa. This chapter focuses on select countries in Southern Africa; specifically South Africa and Mozambique and analyses their experience with prepaid electricity metering. South Africa and Mozambique have electrification rates of 94% and 35% respectively. Prepaid metering was introduced in South Africa in 1988, whilst Mozambique introduced prepaid metering in 1995. Both nations introduced prepaid metering for similar reasons (to increase utility revenues and curb electricity arrearage). Whilst the prepayment system was compulsory for all in Mozambique, it was targeted at low-income households in South Africa. Challenges still hobble the roll-out of prepaid metering in both countries. The key challenge in South Africa has been the problem of electricity theft leading to significant revenue loss, whilst in Mozambique, the problem has been low—quality service plagued with voltage fluctuations and constant power outage. Smart meters are proferred as a solution. In South Africa, these meters will enhance the capacity to detect electricity theft/tampering. They will also enable consumer access to a variety of tariffs like Time of Use (TOU), Inclined Block Tariff (IBT), Maximum Demand, Free Basic Electricity (FBE), which can all be updated remotely. In Mozambique, the quality of electricity supply enjoyed by prepaid metering consumers is a huge concern that has to be addressed. Meter calibrations and reliability, which will ensure speedy meter acquisition should be prioritised. Also, meter performance under the following extreme conditions; humidity, temperature, voltage limits, vibration should be ascertained.