Telecommunications group Vodacom has fully operationalised virtual wheeling, marking a major milestone through a power purchase agreement (PPA) with independent power producer (IPP) SOLA Group.

The move represents a significant breakthrough in procuring renewable electricity for commercial operations.

It is also a major step forward in South Africa’s energy transformation journey and serves as a blueprint for other companies in the country to follow, says Vodacom South Africa CEO Sitho Mdlalose.

In August 2023, Vodacom partnered with State-owned power utility Eskom to innovate and develop the virtual wheeling mechanism, which overcomes the limitations of traditional wheeling.

Subsequently, Vodacom subsidiary Mezzanine created the first platform that enabled virtual wheeling and assessed it through a successful pilot phase.

This solution, now ready for seamless adoption by other energy users, aggregates energy consumption across multiple consumption points through smart metering.

The energy consumption data is reconciled with the energy generated from an IPP in the virtual wheeling platform to enable companies with complex, distributed operational footprints to access renewable energy on a large scale.

“This milestone was ultimately achieved by leveraging an agnostic platform developed by Mezzanine and renewable energy from SOLA’s solar power plant in Virginia, in the Free State,” he says.

“Virtual wheeling is a game changer for companies like ours with distributed operations, removing long-standing barriers to access renewable energy.”

The virtual wheeling solution unlocks cost savings, reduces greenhouse-gas emissions and mitigates the impact of climate change. It also contributes to grid stability – with the additional renewable energy contributing to the prevention of loadshedding – while creating jobs in the energy sector.

“Virtual wheeling marks a pivotal moment in South Africa’s energy transition, and we are proud to be the independent power producer behind Vodacom’s first agreement of this kind,” adds SOLA Group founder and chairperson Simon Haw.

“By enabling large, distributed businesses to access our renewable energy at scale and at lower cost, this innovation not only decarbonises operations but also accelerates the shift to a cleaner, more resilient energy system.”

The solution also allows additional renewables capacity to be integrated into the national grid without affecting Eskom’s balance sheet.