Ministerial Determination under section 34 of the Electricity Regulation Act, 2006 and the launch of the Independent Transmission Programme

On 28 March 2025, the Minister of Electricity and Energy announced that following consultation with the Minister of Finance and the National Energy Regulator of South Africa, a Ministerial Determination in terms of section 34(1)(b) of the Electricity Regulation Act, 2006 was issued for the development of new electricity transmission infrastructure to ensure the optimal supply of electricity.

Following the Ministerial Determination, on 1 April 2025, the Minister announced the launch of the Independent Transmission Programme (ITP) pilot aimed at securing private investment for the design, finance and development of 400kV transmission power lines with ancillary transformation infrastructure. The total length of the new transmission lines is 1,164 kilometres located in the three corridors: Northern Cape, North-West and Gauteng. This correlates with the Integrated Resources Plan and Transmission Development Plan 2024. Notably, the Department of Electricity and Energy will be responsible for procuring the new electricity transmission infrastructure from independent transmission providers; and the buyer of such electricity transmission infrastructure will be the National Transmission Company of South Africa SOC Limited, which sale will be governed by the terms of a transmission services agreement and related project documents required to be concluded in accordance with the tendering requirements.

The ITP confirms South African government’s commitment to foster collaborative efforts between public and private sectors to address the energy challenges in South Africa and to boost economic growth.