Eskom's virtual wheeling programme is targeting a mid-2026 pilot launch, with the Enerweb automation platform now under construction and NERSA trading rules being finalised. Here's what C&I off-takers with multi-site footprints, funded solar, PPAs, and BESS need to know right now.

Eskom's Virtual Wheeling Pilot Report Is Due: What the Outcome Means for C&I Off-Takers Banking on Cross-Jurisdictional Access

South Africa's commercial and industrial (C&I) energy sector is watching closely as Eskom's virtual wheeling programme moves from proof-of-concept into full commercial rollout, with the utility's own website now confirming a pilot phase launch targeted for mid-2026. For property owners, fund managers, and C&I off-takers structured around funded solar, Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), the trajectory of this programme is no longer a regulatory footnote — it is a foundational commercial variable.

What Is Virtual Wheeling?

Virtual wheeling is a financial mechanism that facilitates the sale and delivery of electricity from Independent Power Producers (IPPs) to end-users via an existing transmission or distribution network. Unlike traditional bilateral wheeling, virtual wheeling offers a mechanism to claim energy purchased from a generator by entities transacting on behalf of multiple Eskom or municipal connected customers.

Eskom explains that virtual wheeling allows an entity, known as the buyer, to purchase electricity from an IPP and have that energy virtually allocated to multiple grid-connected end-users. The buyer does this by signing a power purchase agreement with an IPP and then contracting with customers connected to the Eskom or municipal grids. Critically, the grid-connected customer is obliged to pay their utility bill as normal and Eskom will then 'refund' the buyer for the energy being claimed at the prescribed rate. In other words, under virtual wheeling the end-user's bill and contract is unchanged and energy transactions are processed separately through Eskom.

Where Things Stand: From Vodacom Pilot to Commercial Scale

Vodacom's PPA with Sola Group went live in September 2025, making it the first in the country and on the continent to adopt the virtual wheeling model. For Vodacom South Africa, which operates over 15,000 low-voltage sites across 168 municipalities, these geographic and infrastructure complexities had previously prevented access to large-scale renewable energy from IPPs. The proof-of-concept validated the concept but also revealed the limitations of manual administration.

In December 2025, Eskom made its most decisive infrastructure move yet. Eskom awarded a significant contract to Johannesburg-based Enerweb to build a software platform that will automate and scale the utility's new wheeling model. The proof-of-concept with Vodacom demonstrated that virtual wheeling is technically feasible, but it also exposed the administrative burdens associated with manual processes.

Eskom reports that the commercial model has undergone only minor changes since the pilot, with these relating primarily to the contracting model, as well as some updates to business rules.

What This Means for C&I Off-Takers

Buyers who undertake businesses in the commercial and industrial sectors will benefit the most from using the virtual wheeling platform, since these buyers tend to have multiple offtake sites that are connected to both Eskom and municipal networks across different municipal jurisdictions. For instance, a large retailer who operates different sites across various locations — with some embedded in Eskom and others in diverse municipal grids — will be able to access renewable energy to power all of its operations through virtual wheeling.

Eskom's Virtual Wheeling programme bypasses the need for complex municipal billing adjustments and has become the preferred route for retail chains and industrial groups with operations across multiple jurisdictions.

However, a key constraint remains. Eskom will implement virtual wheeling only with municipalities in financial good standing with itself. "Eskom will only refund an offtaker if the municipality is in 'good standing' with Eskom — a status that many municipalities lack."

Implications for Funded Solar, PPAs, and BESS

For developers and funders structuring C&I solar projects, virtual wheeling changes the bankability calculus considerably:

PPAs across jurisdictions: IPPs can conclude PPAs with several off-takers at the same time, no amendments to existing electricity supply agreements are required, and municipalities are not legally mandated to have wheeling frameworks. This unlocks a far larger addressable market for IPP-backed PPA structures.
Funded solar and aggregation: Virtual wheeling and the accompanying wheeled energy refund mechanism will stimulate a significant influx of new buyers, which in turn will increase IPP investment and market activity.
BESS integration: Another factor changing the renewable picture is the evolution of battery energy storage systems (BESS). Global storage prices have dropped considerably, averaging $115 per kWh as of the end of 2024, and this cost reduction has made it feasible for developers to include batteries as standard in new projects. As we look toward 2030, the value of energy is shifting from volume (kWh) to timing (flexibility), and the wholesale market's co-optimization of energy and reserves further strengthens the business case for storage and flexible hybrid projects.
Shorter PPA tenors: Virtual wheeling gives the customer the option of significantly reducing the term of a PPA as compared to traditional one-to-one wheeling arrangements. This reduces offtaker commitment risk and broadens the pool of willing buyers.

The Regulatory Backdrop

The updated Regulatory Rules on Network Charges for Third-Party Transportation of Energy in South Africa are to, among other objectives, permit cross-jurisdictional wheeling between Eskom and municipalities.

After pressure from Energy and Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, NERSA has expedited the preparation of electricity trading rules, which have now been published for public and stakeholder comment, marking a major step toward formalising the trading market. The awarding of the Enerweb contract provides the clearest signal yet that Eskom intends virtual wheeling to form part of the transitional architecture leading to the future wholesale market. The transitional first phase of the South African Wholesale Electricity Market (SAWEM) is planned to "go-live" on 1 April 2026, subject to completion of the market code and supporting regulations.

However, regulatory tensions persist. Eskom has faced severe criticism for effectively limiting participation in virtual wheeling to certain large corporates while excluding the broader market that competitive trading was supposed to unlock. Some stakeholders have accused Eskom of abusing and entrenching its dominant market position rather than preparing the ground for the open, competitive trading environment envisioned in government policy.

The SolarXgen View

The mid-2026 pilot launch target, combined with the Enerweb platform contract and NERSA's accelerated rule-making, creates a narrow but real window for C&I off-takers to position their energy procurement strategies now. For commercial property owners and corporates with multi-site footprints, the time to structure a virtual wheeling-ready PPA — with complementary on-site solar and BESS — is before the pipeline narrows.

Virtual wheeling serves both an immediate practical function — allowing customers to access private renewable generation despite grid and rooftop space constraints — and a longer-term institutional function as a stepping stone towards market-based dispatch and competitive procurement.

C&I off-takers who wait for the final regulations to be gazetted before engaging their energy advisors risk being left behind in a queue that is already forming. The Enerweb platform build, NERSA's trading rules, and the SAWEM go-live timeline are all converging in 2026. Act now.

Eskom's Virtual Wheeling Pilot Report Is Due: What the Outcome Means for C&I Off-Takers Banking on Cross-Jurisdictional Access