How to save and get the most out of your prepaid electricity

The National Energy Regulator (NERSA) approved an 18.65% price hike in electricity tariffs in January 2023. In addition to this, NERSA approved a price increase of 18.49% for municipalities. 

What this means is that customers directly supplied by Eskom would have experienced this price hike since April 2023, whereas customers supplied by their municipalities will experience this from 1 July 2023. 

No standardised pricing for electricity

In South Africa, electricity costs are not standard. You can, depending on your area and the amount of electricity you use, be charged more or less. 

Below is a list of some of the factors that can contribute to the cost of your electricity bill:

1. Municipality 

In South Africa, we have 257 local, metropolitan and district municpalities. When it comes to the cost of electricity, the difference in cost is based on the metropolitan municipality. 

This is a list of the metropolitan municipalities in South Africa:

• • Buffalo City (East London)

  • City of Cape Town

  • Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (East Rand)

  • City of eThekwini (Durban)

  • City of Johannesburg

  • Mangaung Municipality (Bloemfontein)

  • Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality (Gqeberha)

  • City of Tshwane (Pretoria)

2. The cost of your home

People whose municipality property valuations are less are charged less for electricity. 

3. The amount of electricity you use

Households who use more electricity will be charged more for their electricity. 

Incline Block Tariffs (IBT) were introduced to help consumers who used less electricity. 

A closer look at The City of Cape Town and the three-tier tariff system it uses to calculate electricity costs:

1. Lifeline Tariff

• Your home costs less than R400 000

• You use less than 450kWh per month

• You have a prepaid electricity meter installed 

If you use between 25-350kWh per month, you will be charged R1,79/kWh. If you use more than 350kWh - 450kWh, you will be charged R3,62/kWh. 

2. Domestic Tariff

You fall into this category if you meet the following requirements:

• The municipal valuation of your property is between R400 000 and
  R1 000 000.

• You have prepaid electricity meter must be installed.

• Your monthly electricity usage is above 450 kWh.

If you use between 0-600kWh on average per month, you will be charged R2,98/kWh. If you use more than 600kWh per month, you will be charged R3,63/kWh. 

3. Home-user Tariff

The final tier of the pricing system in The City of Cape Town is the home-user tariff.  You fall into this category if you meet the following criteria: 

• If your municipal property valuation is R1 000 000 or more. 

• If you have a credit meter installed (this applies regardless of your property valuation). 

• If you have a prepaid meter installed. 

If you use between 0-600kWh per month, you will be charged R2,62/kWh. If you use in excess of 600kWh, you will be charged R3,62/kWh.  There is also an additional service fee for these users of R212,75. 

4 Tips to help you save prepaid electricity 

Why does Cape Town sometimes have a different loadshedding schedule?

The reason The City of Cape Town can sometimes reduce loadshedding by a stage is because of the hydroelectric powerplant at the Steenbras Dam. 

1. Don’t buy electricity in bulk or for more than one month

Unlike the discount you may receive when paying something in advance, for example your child’s school fees, with electricity, the more you buy, the more you will be charged. 

2. Switch off all appliances at the wall

If you’re not using an appliance like a phone charger or television, turn it off. By doing this you don’t use unnecessary kilowatts. 

Did you know: plugged in appliances can still use up to 15% of their operating power. 

3. Switch to more energy-efficient light bulbs 

LEDs use 90% less energy than the traditional incandescent light. Switching your household lights to LED could end up saving you electricity, or at least, helping you stretch those kilowatts further. 

4. Install a geyser timer

Should you switch off your geyser to save electricity?

Did you know: your geyser uses about 40% to 60% of your total average household electricity bill. 

Unlike a regular appliance that is plugged in, by keeping a geyser on, the water is always at a high temperature which means that it doesn’t need a lot of heating. 

When the hot water, however, is used up, that’s when your geyser will have to use power to heat the water again.

It’s important to note that simply switching off your geyser will not significantly reduce your electricity usage. 

Instead of turning off your geyser, you can:

• Take shorter showers.

• Set your geyser at a standard temperature.

• When taking a shower, don’t use too much hot water.

• Install a geyser timer.