Eskom adapts strategy amid South Africa electricity market reforms

South Africa’s state utility, Eskom, is reshaping its business model to adapt to a more competitive electricity market. As reforms reduce the utility's monopoly, the sector is opening to private generators, distributors, and electricity traders.

Eskom Chief Executive Dan Marokane stated that the company intends to explore new revenue streams, including renewable energy, data-center supply, electric-vehicle charging, and regional electricity exports. The utility aims to leverage its existing infrastructure and scale to remain commercially relevant even as it moves away from owning every part of the electricity value chain.

Forecasts from GlobalData suggest that renewable technologies, such as solar PV and wind, are expected to surpass thermal generation capacity in South Africa by 2035. This transition is driven by the removal of generation licensing thresholds, allowing large consumers like mines and manufacturers to secure power directly from independent producers through corporate power purchase agreements and electricity wheeling.