OUTA welcomes Eskom red tape reductions on home solar

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) welcomes Eskom’s decision to ease the costly red tape around residential solar and battery energy systems, which is a long-overdue step toward less onerous conditions pertaining to the registration process required by Eskom.

Until now, Eskom required all small-scale embedded generation (SSEG) systems – including hybrid, standby and back-up solar PV and battery storage – to be signed off by an engineer registered with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA). This created unnecessary costs and delays for homeowners.

Eskom recently announced that from 1 October 2025, it will allow qualified and accredited electricians registered with the Department of Labour and Employment to sign off residential systems under the existing Certificate of Compliance (CoC) framework in the Occupational Health and Safety Act and SANS 10142-1 Wiring Code.

This applies to Eskom’s direct customers. Municipalities have their own policies.

While this is a major step forward, some details still require further clarity from Eskom, such as whether these changes in registration and compliance requirements apply only to residential SSEG installations or to all low-voltage residential, commercial and agricultural SSEG installations less than 100 kW.

OUTA denounces claims that it disregards the safety issues pertaining SSEG installations.

“We have always viewed the requirement to have a qualified electrical engineer to conduct the approval and sign-off of residential SSEG installations as an overkill. We believe that the existing Certificate of Compliance regulatory and compliance framework of the Occupational Health and Safety Act sufficiently covers the safety issues raised, and Eskom’s change to the regulation and registration requirements have now concurred with our views on this matter. The electrical installation regulations, which make reference to SANS 10142-1, are the mandatory South African national standard for the safe wiring of low-voltage electrical installations, also known as the Wiring Code. The safety aspect is sufficiently covered in this regard,” says Duvenage.

“For anyone to imply that OUTA disregards the safety aspect of these installations is disingenuous.”

OUTA has held constructive engagements with Eskom management on these matters, as well as other aspects of its SSEG registration and compliance processes. These engagements are ongoing and, in Eskom’s views expressed with OUTA, the conditions and regulations being introduced are an evolutionary process to develop an efficient energy eco-system that benefits the economy as a whole, including consumers. Accordingly, OUTA anticipates that further amendments to Eskom’s registration conditions may follow, depending on how Eskom addresses the matters OUTA has raised.

“The more we engage effectively with each other, the more these processes evolve for the benefit of electricity customers and the public,” says Wayne Duvenage, OUTA CEO. “Eskom’s willingness to listen reflects a more mature and inclusive approach, a far cry from the hard-headed stance of the past.”

These changes come at a critical time, with Eskom’s moratorium until 31 March 2026 on certain registration and compliance requirements for existing and new solar PV, battery storage and other SSEG systems less than 100 kW.

OUTA continues to advocate for regulatory, registration and compliance processes that are rational, affordable and practical, ensuring both safety and fairness for consumers adopting renewable energy solutions.

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