Electricity Regulation Act, 2006 (Act No. 4 of 2006)

Rules

Grid Capacity Allocation Rules

4. Principles of the Grid Capacity Allocation Rules
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4.1 The Network Service Provider (NSP) must adhere to the following principles in the provision of grid access:
(a) Non-discriminatory access: Third parties must be granted equal access to the grid, encouraging competition and fairness.
(b) Protection of existing customers: The rights and responsibilities of current customers are safeguarded, ensuring that their interests are not jeopardised by new connections or projects.
(c) Compliance with the Grid Code: Any party seeking to connect to the grid must comply with the standards and guidelines established in the Grid Code, which governs technical and operational practices.
(d) Fair access process: Access to the grid must be granted through a transparent and fair procedure, reducing barriers for legitimate connections.
(e) Capacity limitations: NSPs may refuse access if they can objectively demonstrate insufficient network capacity to maintain system integrity.
(f) Capacity discrimination: NSPs may not discriminate between customers or classes of customers regarding access, tariffs, prices, and conditions of service, except for objectively justifiable and identifiable differences approved by the Regulator.
(g) Information costs: Parties requesting information about network capacity may be charged a reasonable fee, which helps cover the costs associated with providing such information.

 

4.2 Acceptance of the Cost Estimate Letter (CEL): Both parties must agree that the acceptance of the CEL recognises the indicative nature of the costs that are provided, including the technical scope, which might change when the scope becomes more accurate at the Budget Quote (BQ) stage. The acceptance of the CEL by the Applicant puts an obligation on the NSP to reserve capacity for an Applicant. The provisions below establish the framework for determining a project’s readiness level for grid access:
(a) First ready: A threshold of readiness of the Applicant’s project to build the generation Facility and related grid infrastructure in accordance with the published rules.
(b) For the purposes of these Rules, readiness refers to the demonstrable stage at which a generation, transmission or distribution project has met all regulatory, technical, financial, and contractual conditions required to proceed with physical grid connection and energisation within a defined timeframe, as verified by the NSP.