A deal driven by cost control
The additional capacity negotiated by Idwala will be added to the solar installations already in place or planned at its production sites, as projects combining renewable energy and storage multiply across the continent, such as the Waltrop battery park, which has entered construction for a 900 MW capacity in Germany. The mining group highlights better control over its energy expenses amid rising tariffs applied by state utility Eskom. « The wheeling agreement concluded with NOA guarantees us a supply of renewable electricity at competitive rates for all our lime and calcium carbonate production sites, » said Wayne Brown, chief executive officer of Idwala Industrial Holdings. This combination of on-site solar generation and wheeling reflects a growing search among South African industrial players for a stable renewable supply.
The supplement provided by wheeling helps smooth load curves when on-site solar production covers only part of daily needs. Several producers and traders combine solar, wind and battery storage to offer a more continuous supply to their industrial clients. This technical architecture accompanies the gradual structuring of South Africa’s renewable electricity market.
Growing competition among private suppliers
The agreement confirms NOA’s progress with large industrial and mining consumers. In July 2025, the company announced an annual supply of 288 gigawatt-hours (GWh) to the Siyanda Bakgatla platinum mine. It had previously signed a contract with Sibanye-Stillwater covering approximately 401 GWh per year, to which a flexible volume of 100 GWh can be added.
Discovery Green is following a similar trajectory, with contracts signed with Afrox and Glencore. These deals illustrate the growing role of private producers and traders capable of aggregating several renewable sources before delivering them to industrial clients through the grid. South Africa’s wheeling market is thus structuring itself around a growing number of players specialized in direct supply to large accounts.
Eskom Green’s arrival reshuffles the deck
This market is nonetheless entering a new phase with the emergence of Eskom Green. The public operator’s new subsidiary, authorized in July to raise its own financing, aims to develop large-scale renewable projects and offer a more continuous supply to large consumers. Its positioning could expand the offer available on the wheeling market.
This development, however, raises questions about the future allocation of clients between public and private operators, as well as the terms of grid access. The use of connection capacity, potentially limited as production capacity increases, is among the points of vigilance identified by industry players.
A regulatory framework under restructuring
The legal framework has also evolved with the entry into force of the Electricity Regulation Amendment Act (ERAA), which restructures South Africa’s electricity market around a new operator, the National Transmission Company South Africa (NTCSA). This restructuring opens the door to a growing number of private players in the transmission and distribution segments.
According to available data, NOA now reportedly exceeds 1.4 gigawatts (GW) of contracted supply agreements. Separately, Etana Energy recently obtained a 500 million dollar ($) guarantee from British International Investment (BII) and GuarantCo to support its own wheeling operations, illustrating the growing scale of financial arrangements underpinning this market.