The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) has opened public comment on amended Cost Recovery Rules for Independent Transmission Providers, and written submissions must reach it by 2 December 2026, according to its official notice. The Energy Regulator approved publication of the consultation paper and the draft amended Rules on 29 October 2026, and a virtual public hearing follows on 7 December 2026 from 14:00 to 17:00.
What this means for your business
These rules decide how a private company that builds and runs high-voltage power lines is allowed to recover what it spends. That matters beyond the energy industry, because transmission is the part of the grid that moves bulk power to every large buyer of electricity. If you run a factory, a cold chain, a mine, a farm with heavy irrigation or a property portfolio, the rules shape who ultimately carries grid costs and how quickly private money can flow into new lines. NERSA’s notice asks stakeholders and members of the public for comment, so a business does not need to be an energy company to take part.
What NERSA has actually published
NERSA says it is amending the Cost Recovery Rules for Independent Transmission Providers (ITPs) “to address key regulatory issues”. The notice does not list those issues. They sit in the consultation paper and the draft amended Rules, which NERSA says are on its website under Electricity, then Consultation, then Notices.
The key dates and contacts, all taken from the notice:
- Written comments go by email to crr4itps@nersa.org.za, and the closing date is 2 December 2026.
- The public hearing is on 7 December 2026, on Microsoft Teams, from 14:00 to 17:00.
- Anyone who wants to attend or present at the hearing must ask by 16:30 on 2 December 2026, via publichearings@nersa.org.za or 012 401 4660.
- NERSA says it keeps the right not to hold the hearing if no one asks to present by the closing date.
- Queries go to Mondli Shozi at NERSA on 012 401 4600.
That last point about the hearing is easy to miss. A hearing that attracts no requests may simply not take place, so silence from businesses can mean the discussion happens without them.
Why the rules exist
This is a second round. NERSA first published draft Cost Recovery Rules for independent transmission projects on 26 September 2025, with comments originally due on 27 October 2025. It later extended the deadline to 23:59 on 3 November 2025 after requests for more time, Green Building Africa reported. In that report NERSA called private involvement in transmission “a new development in South Africa” and said it wanted a balanced approach that protects consumers, licensees and investors.
The solar trade body SAPVIA, in a note to members in 2025, described the background this way: government had resolved to attract private investment into the national transmission network because of grid constraints and delays in the Transmission Development Plan. It said NERSA drafted the rules so that consumers contribute to a reliable transmission grid while investors can recover efficient investment costs. The consultation paper at that time carried five guiding questions for comment.
The October 2026 notice, as SolarQuarter summarised it, repeats the dates above and the invitation to stakeholders, but gives no detail on what has changed from the 2025 draft.
Where this sits in the grid timeline
The Independent Transmission Projects programme itself has slipped. As we reported, the final request for proposals moved from the third quarter of 2026 to the second quarter of 2027, with a second draft package going to seven pre-qualified bidders before the end of 2026. Cost recovery rules are one of the things bidders and lenders need settled before they can price a line, so the December deadline is part of the same path.
Grid access is also the constraint on the private power that many businesses already buy. Delegates at Windaba 2026 heard that grid capacity is becoming a limit on private wind projects. And if you are weighing a supply deal now, the regulator has separately set a hearing on 7 December for an electricity trading licence for Engie and an import-export licence for the Energy Exchange of Southern Africa. The two hearings fall on the same day, at different times, so a business or industry body that wants to follow both should plan for it.
What to do or watch
- Download the consultation paper and the draft amended Rules from the NERSA website this week and read the questions NERSA asks.
- Ask your finance or energy lead what share of your electricity cost is network charges, and whether a change in how transmission costs are recovered could reach your tariff, then decide if that is worth a comment.
- If you belong to an industry body, find out whether it is preparing a consolidated submission, as SAPVIA did in 2025, and send it your numbers before its internal deadline, which will be earlier than 2 December.
- Email your written comments to crr4itps@nersa.org.za by 2 December 2026.
- If you want to speak at the hearing, register by 16:30 on 2 December, since NERSA may cancel the session if nobody does.
- Watch for the second draft of the transmission tender documents, due to bidders before the end of 2026.
What we could not confirm
- What the amended Rules change compared with the 2025 draft. We did not open the consultation paper or the draft amended Rules, and the notice only says they address “key regulatory issues”.
- Whether the amendments would raise or lower the cost to electricity users. NERSA’s notice says nothing on tariffs.
- Why the title now refers to Independent Transmission Providers where the 2025 coverage referred to Independent Transmission Projects. We have followed each source’s own wording.
- Whether NERSA will extend the 2 December deadline, as it did in 2025.
