1. How can metros and municipalities operate to ensure that revenue generated from electricity sales is sustainable? by Dr Minnesh Bipath and Dr Willie de Beer

2. Overview of the 2013-14 audit outcomes and key recommendations for improvement

3. What is important in implementing smart grid projects

4. Municipal Sustainability Challenges
Potential Business Impact
Potential Mitigating Strategy
Revenue collection
Business sustainability
Improve revenue collection.
 Leverage technologies e.g. introduce AMI inclusive of Smart Meters.
 Improve customer communication and participation through enabled technology.
Optimise revenue potential
Business sustainability.
 Inability to render acceptable level of service.
 Credit rating.
 Access to funds.
Conduct a Cost of Supply study and align tariff structure.
 Address customer segmentation and align tariff structure.
 Improve CNL and leverage GIS.
 Implement metering management strategy (procurement to meter retirement).
 Improve demand and load profile management through technology deployment.
 Improve back-office capability.

5. Municipal Sustainability Challenges
Potential Business Impact
Potential Mitigating Strategy
Demand & load profile management
Loss of revenue due to unnecessary NAC and demand charges.
Enhance grid visibility and introduce technology to facilitate demand and load profile management.
 Introduce distributed generation and alternative energy options where practical to assist profile improvement.
 Align tariff structure to present the desired customer signal.
 Improve and enable customer participation.
High non-technical losses
Loss of revenue.
Improve CNL and leverage GIS functionality.
 Invest in energy balancing and check metering.
 Improve back office and front line capability to effectively manage non-technical losses.
 Ensure that all energy consumption points are effectively measured and accounted for inclusive of municipal buildings, municipal installations, streetlights and water pumping.
 Implement metering management strategy (procurement to meter retirement).

6. Municipal Sustainability Challenges
Potential Business Impact
Potential Mitigating Strategy
High technical losses
Loss of revenue
Invest in and improve maintenance of electricity related plant and assets.
 Invest in advanced asset management solutions.
 Invest in the recruitment, training and retention of the right level of staff.
 Conduct grid/network loading study and correct loading and configuration.
 Invest in energy balancing and statistical metering.
Grid/network availability
Inability to render acceptable level of service
Conduct a network/grid study.
 Introduce technologies to improve grid visibility.
 Leverage Smart Meters as grid sensors.
Grid/network reliability
Revenue loss due to grid down time.
Monitor and manage grid through technology deployment e.g. advanced asset management solutions.
 Improve maintenance and introduce asset management (inclusive of maintenance) strategy.
 Improve asset register and asset location.
 Link asset register to asset management strategy and resource allocation.
Invest Distribution automation and substation automation

7. Municipal Sustainability Challenges
Potential Business Impact
Potential Mitigating Strategy
Business Sustainability
Inability to fund the business operations and capital requirements.
 Inability to raise capital.
 Inability to attract competent and skill resources.
 Inability to effectively deliver services and to meet customer requirements.
 Customer resistance and demonstrations.
Address business model and funding regime.
Ringfence the business appropriately to provide effective line of sight in respect of trading accounts and other business components.
Implement a consistent approach in respect of revenue management and collect all revenues due to the municipality e.g. electricity, water, rates, taxes.
Conduct a cost of supply study and align electricity tariffs and charges.
Through load management (DR) and energy balancing capability as well as the correct tariff signals improve load factor and reduce system demand.
Evaluated, measure and track maintenance performance with the aim to identify and address root causes, hedge against plant failure and to improve the reliability and availability of the supply.
Define the technology vision for the business and deploy the applications which will improve the business sustainability and service delivery capability.
Ensure full compliance to governance, policy and regulatory requirements and ensure that investments are appropriately aligned.
Enhance customer and stakeholder participation.
Create an effective back office & front line capability.
Define technology deployment vision and strategy.
Define the IT/OT requirements and ensure that the deployment is in support of the business objectives.