The launch of South Africa’s wholesale electricity market has been pushed back from 1 April to the third quarter of 2026, the National Transmission Company South Africa (NTCSA) said on Thursday.

The NTCSA said “additional work” is required to ensure that all market, operational and regulatory requirements are in place, but in a statement on Thursday did not specify what remains outstanding.

Several licence conditions attached to the market operator licence granted by Nersa in December 2025 are still being finalised, it said.

The delay is a setback for South Africa’s electricity reform programme. The wholesale market – known as Sawem – is the mechanism through which independent power producers, licensed traders and large buyers would be able to trade electricity competitively, breaking Eskom’s longstanding monopoly as the dominant buyer and seller of power.

Nersa has so far licensed 10 electricity traders, including Green Electron Market, Discovery Green and Africa GreenCo, in anticipation of the market’s launch. Eskom board chairman Mteto Nyati said last week that the NTCSA is acting as the market and system operator on an interim basis until an independent transmission system operator is formally established.

Phased approach

The NTCSA said it is adopting a “structured, phased approach” to safeguard system stability. CEO Monde Bala said the introduction of the market “will represent a significant step forward for South Africa’s energy sector” when all requirements are met.