The NERSA Nightmare: Why Are We Paying for Incompetence?
A regulator ignoring critical warnings, losing court battles, and costing consumers billions.
Ignoring the Tariff Trap: A Comprehensive Guide Goes Unnoticed
Towards the end of last year, I raised the alarm. I published several articles on our website and LinkedIn, directly calling out the poor performance and incompetence of the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA). My frustration wasn’t limited to public posts; I even sent emails expressing my deep disappointment to NERSA officials, reaching as high up as the chairperson.
It seems my words—and the words of many others—have fallen on deaf ears.
regulators and utility companies should consider when assessing proposed tariff adjustments. This crucial blueprint for fair evaluation was seemingly disregarded.
Yet, like so many of my articles and posts, it appears NERSA paid little to no attention. Even the newspapers—and I don’t trust them to express the truth—chose to ignore my warnings about NERSA’s apparent incompetence. It’s clear that critical analysis is not welcome in this space.
The Power Quality Disaster: Billions Lost and Zero Interest
In another crucial blog post, I argued that power quality is often overlooked, despite being absolutely crucial and having massive economic implications. I highlighted how billions of dollars and euros are lost annually worldwide due to poor power quality.
Did NERSA express any interest? Zero.Â
This lack of interest is telling. It may not be obvious, but neither the distribution organisations nor Eskom would express interest because they might actually benefit from not fixing the underlying unbalanced power conditions. Their gain is our tremendous loss.
Another Loss in Court: The System is Failing
The chickens are now coming home to roost. NERSA has lost another court case concerning the way electricity tariffs are evaluated and approved. This is a significant blow, especially considering two major metropolitan municipalities joined NERSA in defending their flawed process. A loss of this magnitude
underscores a fundamental problem with their methodology and legal standing.
Technical Losses: More Than Just Theft
Recently, I saw a video where a presenter spoke about the “technical losses” that every power consumer in the country is forced to pay for. His primary angle was electricity theft. While theft is certainly a factor, it is not the whole story.
Consumers are paying a heavy price for technical losses that result directly from poor power quality.
This is a massive, undetected financial drain, not to mention the slow, damaging effect it has on our equipment and appliances.
Power Quality Awareness: Protect Your Bottom Line
Poor power quality is a silent drain on efficiency. Our detailed article clarifies precisely why power quality matters, demonstrating the measurable impact of harmonics, transients, and voltage fluctuations.
Key Insights Included:
- In-depth analysis of two real-world case studies.
- Clear documentation on financial and operational risks.
- Actionable steps to safeguard your sensitive equipment.
Negative Phase Sequence: Deciphering Unbalanced Networks
Unbalance is a critical threat to motor and transformer longevity. Our Negative Phase Sequence Consulting guide is your definitive resource for understanding this complex network condition.
Visual Clarity & Analysis:
- Several stunning visualizations to explain the entire unbalance condition.
- Explanation of sequence components (Positive, Negative, Zero).
- Tools for diagnosing and correcting chronic network instability.
At Modderbee, the severity of unbalanced phase-to-phase voltages is exceptionally high. In this video, you’ll observe a stark contrast between the balanced voltage triangle—shown in green—and the distorted, unbalanced triangle—highlighted in red. Just imagine the stress this kind of imbalance places on a three-phase motor: increased vibration, overheating, and premature failure are only the beginning.
Modderbee Unbalanced Phase-to-Phase Voltages
The Ultimate Question: Why the Waste?
So, the question remains, and it’s a critical one: Why are our taxes being wasted on an organisation—NERSA—that is so clearly not contributing to society?
Prominent economists and countless public voices are asking the exact same question. It’s time for accountability. We deserve a competent regulator that protects consumers and ensures a functional, cost-effective power supply, not one that ignores warnings and repeatedly fails in court.
