Cape Town starts wheeling electricity for the first time in big move to end load shedding

The City of Cape Town’s wheeling pilot has kicked off, with private companies now supplying power to others using the city’s infrastructure.

Wheeling is a process where electricity is bought and sold between private parties, using the existing grid to transport power from where it is generated to end-users that can be long distances apart.

In theory, the process should provide greater access to renewable and independent energy, which should go a long way in helping businesses (and one day, residents) escape load shedding, while also pulling demand of Eskom’s generation arm.

According to Growthpoint Properties, it has become the first party to wheel renewable electricity in the city in collaboration with licenced electricity trader Etana Energy.

The two groups were selected to be part of the city’s six-month wheeling pilot project, which includes 15 wheeling participants representing 25 generators and 40 customers.

Through Etana, solar energy generated at Growthpoint’s The Constantia Village shopping centre in Constantia is being exported into Cape Town’s electricity grid for use at Growthpoint’s 36 Hans Strijdom office building in the Foreshore, the home of Investec and Ninety One.

A wheeling agreement between the city and Growthpoint was signed at the end of August and solar power from The Constantia Village was successfully injected into the city’s energy grid for the first time on Sunday, 10 September 2023.
“The pilot will lay the groundwork for future wheeling in Cape Town and enable businesses to use energy from rooftop solar panels across multiple locations, encouraging them to optimise solar capacity instead of limiting it to individual building use,” the group said.

Overall, Cape Town is planning to add up to one gigawatt (1,000MW) of independent power to end load shedding in the city over time.