Solar power in the Northern Cape

Kimberley: a compulsory time-of-use tariff

Sol Plaatje has had a council-approved SSEG photovoltaic policy since May 2017, and in SALGA's 2023 survey it had an approved SSEG tariff and about 2.1 MWp of registered systems. Its draft 2026/27 tariff schedule makes the Small Consumer time-of-use tariff (under 70 kVA) compulsory for SSEG customers, domestic and commercial alike.

That changes the sums. On the draft rates, winter peak-period energy (June to August) costs roughly six times the winter off-peak rate. Ask the municipality which hours count as peak; where they fall outside daylight, a battery that covers them is worth pricing.

Exports earn a credit that also varies by season and time of day, but two conditions apply. The schedule says no more may be fed back than you consume, so the account holder must be a net consumer, and any payment depends on full compliance with the SSEG policy. Size for your own use, not to sell.

The municipality's budget documents note that its Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Unit isn't functional, so SSEG applications go to the Electrical Directorate.

Elsewhere in the province

Outside Kimberley, SALGA's 2023 survey recorded:

• Gamagara (Kathu): SSEG allowed, application process and approved tariff; about 3 MWp registered.
• Nama Khoi (Springbok): allowed, with a process and approved tariff; about 2 MWp registered.
• Emthanjeni (De Aar): process and approved tariff; about 0.8 MWp.
• Dawid Kruiper (Upington): no information supplied.

On Eskom supply

If Eskom bills you directly, your installer registers the system with Eskom, which on 1 October 2026 extended its waiver of registration-related fees, roughly R9,000 including the smart meter, for grid-tied systems up to 50 kVA until further notice. Registration itself is still required.

Heat, dust and cold nights

Panels lose efficiency as they heat up, which matters where summer afternoons regularly pass 35°C. Ask installers to compare the panels' temperature coefficient, and to leave an air gap under the array.

Dust is less of a problem than you might expect. A Stellenbosch University study at a test site in the semi-arid Northern Cape found that fixed panels left uncleaned performed at most about 1.9% worse than ones cleaned every two weeks, after 75 days without rain. Around 6 mm of rain every four to six weeks kept unwashed panels within 1% of the clean ones, dry cleaning worked as well as washing with water, and a hydrophobic anti-soiling coating actually promoted dust. After a long dry spell, a dry clean is usually enough; you rarely need a cleaning contract.

Winter nights often drop below freezing, so check the operating temperature range of any battery that will sit in an unheated garage or outbuilding.