with foreword by Sicelo Xulu, City Power CEO and AMEU President

In the past few months, many South Africans had to make peace with the fact that the country does not have enough generating capacity to meet the growing demand for energy.

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Sicelo Xulu, AMEU President

This admission has seen many households and businesses subjected to load shedding as the grid creaked under severe pressure and back-up generating capacity became compromised. The collapse of the coal silo at Majuba exacerbated the already dire situation and this unfortunate incident severely constrained Eskom's ability to meet electricity demand.

  
Municipalities do not have electricity generating capabilities and are therefore compelled to accede to Eskom's directive to load shed during periods of constrained supply. When I accepted the presidency of the AMEU last year, I pledged to provide more support to municipalities, especially smaller and rural municipalities; we henceforth need to work together as responsible stakeholders to reduce the impact of load shedding across all spectrums.
 
We should also be mindful that municipalities derive approximately 40% of their revenues from electricity tariff collection. It is therefore crucial that the AMEU assist in capacitating these entities with the tools to help them meet their objectives to ensure their viability and long-term sustainability.
 
Click here to download the handbook (6 MB PDF):

Guidelines for the installation and safe use of standby / portable generators on utilities' networks
 
It is imperative that municipalities prioritise the feasibility of alternative energy sources. Strides have been made globally in the field of smart metering and smart grids and the onus is on municipalities to familiarise themselves with the various solutions available and to explore the feasibility of their implementation in their respective localities.
 
The AMEU is available to provide support in this regard, and efforts should also be made to engage our ratepayers and incorporate them into discussions on finding practical solutions to managing consumption and ensuring security of supply.
 
I have already started fruitful discussions with a number of municipalities around the issue of security of supply and renewable energy sources, and I am confident that these discussions and engagements will incubate innovative and smart mitigating interventions.
 
Lastly, the AMEU is grateful for the continued support of EE Publishers in raising awareness around the use of standby/portable generators. Since the initial publication by the AMEU workgroup in 2007 of the Guidelines for the Installation and Safe Use of Portable Generators on Utilities' Networks, the document has been reproduced and published as NRS 098 by the NRS Association.
 
Click here to download the handbook (6 MB PDF):

Guidelines for the installation and safe use of standby / portable generators on utilities' networks
 
We hope that you will find the updated handbook useful and constructive to your standby /portable generation application for businesses and also at the household level.
 
Sicelo Xulu
AMEU President