International experience suggests South Africa can benefit by focusing on a simple restructuring of its power utility, allowing well-run state-owned entities to flourish.
Developments in the energy sector shouldn’t be reduced to technological sophistication. They should be guided by how they improve the livelihoods of the intended beneficiaries.
When policymakers reduce electricity scarcity to a few factors like theft and vandalism, to be solved with technology and stiff penalties, they miss other factors that contribute to electricity theft.
Electric utilities have a right to make money on their government-granted monopolies, but customers also have a right to know what cyber-protections they would get if they paid more.
One way to cut your household bills could be to deal with just one company for all your utility needs. With today’s technology, it’s an idea that’s not so far fetched as it sounds.
A closer look at the supposed successes of Brian Molefe at South Africa’s power utility, Eskom, shows that they are not what they have been made out to be. They are paper thin.