Installing solar photovoltaic generation at your premises creates obligations that most installers mention only briefly. A grid-connected system must be registered with your electricity distributor — Eskom where Eskom supplies you directly, otherwise your municipality — and it must comply with the applicable grid connection standards.
Unregistered grid-tied systems are widespread, and the consequences surface later: at property transfer, at an insurance claim, or when the distributor conducts an audit. Registering is considerably easier than dealing with any of those.
Business Requirements at a Glance
The requirements for a grid-connected embedded generation installation.
- Apply to your distributor — Eskom if it supplies you directly, otherwise your municipality — before or promptly after installation
- The installation must comply with the applicable grid connection code for embedded generation
- An electrical certificate of compliance covering the installation, issued by a registered person
- A professional engineer or registered professional sign-off, where the system size or the distributor requires it
- Inverter equipment that is approved or certified as the distributor requires
- Appropriate metering, which the distributor may need to change
- Payment of the applicable connection and administration fees
- Compliance with any tariff change the distributor applies to embedded generation customers
Registration and Legal Requirements
Grid-tied and off-grid are treated differently. A system with no connection to the grid at all does not create the same registration obligation, though it still needs an electrical certificate of compliance for the electrical work. A system that connects to the grid — including one that never exports, because it can still affect the network — is embedded generation and must be registered.
This catches people out. Installers frequently say registration is unnecessary because the system does not feed back. Confirm the position with your distributor rather than accepting that.
Requirements scale with system size. Small residential systems have a simplified process at most distributors. Larger systems require more, including professional sign-off, and above certain thresholds may require registration or licensing with the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA). Confirm the current thresholds, which have been amended.
Feed-in and offsetting differ enormously by distributor. Some municipalities buy excess energy at a published tariff; others do not accept export at all; Eskom’s arrangements differ again. Never assume you will be paid for exported energy — confirm before sizing a system around it.
Tariff changes are common. Distributors frequently move embedded generation customers to a different tariff structure, often with a higher fixed charge. That changes the economics of the installation, sometimes substantially, and should be part of the calculation before you buy.
Documents and Ownership Information Required
What a registration application typically requires.
- Completed application form for embedded generation, from your distributor
- Proof of the electricity account and account holder details
- Single line diagram of the installation
- Inverter specifications and proof of approval or certification
- System size in kilowatts, and details of any battery storage
- Electrical certificate of compliance for the installation
- Professional engineer or registered professional sign-off, where required
- Site plan or layout showing the installation
- Proof of payment of applicable fees
- Municipal approval or building plan approval, where structural work was involved
Tax, Licence and Compliance Requirements
Do this before or immediately after installation, not later. Retrospective registration is possible but is harder where the installation does not comply, because remedial work is then required on a completed system.
At property transfer, an unregistered or non-compliant solar installation becomes a real problem. Buyers, conveyancers and banks increasingly ask about it, and an installation that cannot be certified delays transfer.
Insurance. Insurers ask about solar installations, and an unregistered or non-compliant system can affect cover and claims — both for the system itself and for fire damage attributed to it. Notify your insurer of the installation and confirm what documentation it requires.
Use a competent installer. Photovoltaic installation is specialised electrical work, and the industry has grown faster than its skills base. Ask for the registration details of the person who will issue the electrical certificate, and check the installer’s standing with the relevant industry body. Poor installations cause fires.
Batteries add requirements. Battery storage carries its own safety, placement and ventilation considerations, and affects the electrical certificate. Ensure it is included in the certification rather than treated as an appliance.
Body corporate and homeowners’ association approval is required in sectional title and estate properties, and roof rights and appearance rules apply. Obtain written approval before installing.
Process, Deadlines and Ongoing Obligations
Establish who your distributor is, get its embedded generation requirements in writing before you buy, and build registration and certification into the installation contract rather than treating them as optional extras.
Ask the installer to include the electrical certificate of compliance, the single line diagram and the registration application in the quoted scope. Reputable installers do this as standard; those who resist are telling you something.
- Confirm whether Eskom or your municipality is your distributor
- Get the distributor’s embedded generation requirements in writing before buying
- Register even where the system does not export — confirm the position
- Include the electrical certificate and registration in the installer’s scope
- Check the tariff you will move to before sizing the system
- Do not assume you will be paid for exported energy
- Notify your insurer and confirm what it requires
- Get body corporate or estate approval in writing where applicable
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to register if my system does not export?
A grid-connected system is generally embedded generation and must be registered even if it does not export, because it can affect the network. Confirm the position with your distributor rather than relying on an installer.
Who is my distributor?
Eskom where it supplies you directly, otherwise your municipality. The requirements and processes differ between them.
Will I be paid for excess energy?
It depends entirely on the distributor. Some buy excess at a published tariff, some do not accept export at all. Confirm before sizing a system around feed-in income.
What happens at property transfer?
An unregistered or non-compliant installation delays transfer, because buyers, conveyancers and banks ask about it and an installation that cannot be certified must be remedied.
Registration requirements, thresholds, tariffs and feed-in arrangements are set by Eskom, municipalities and NERSA and are being revised as the sector develops. Confirm current requirements directly with your distributor before installing.