Includes bibliography. / A proposal to develop the Upper Tugela Location in KwaZulu, Natal, prompted this study. This study aims to investigate the means to enhance the availability of, and access to, affordable energy sources in the Upper Tugela Location. A further aim is to match appropriate energy sources with the socio-economic conditions prevailing there. The Upper Tugela Location is an ecologically sensitive area of the Upper Tugela catchment. Rural energy planning has been criticized for the development of energy-conversion technologies while there is insufficient understanding of energy procurement practices in rural subsistence economies in South Africa. Qualitative information gained from a questionnaire survey, informal group discussions and direct observations suggest that the inhabitants of the Upper Tugela Location are relatively poor. For this reason a basic rural energy needs approach, which attempts to address the needs of the poorest, has been adopted to provide a theoretical base for the study. Research has revealed the following. Wood is the dominant energy source in the Upper Tugela Location. It is estimated that the annual household consumption of fuelwood is 3000 kg which is below the average fuelwood consumption for a rural area in South Africa. This reflects that this resource is being depleted to the degree that the local inhabitants are supplementing their use of fuelwood with expensive commercial fuels such as coal and paraffin. Locally available wood is in short supply, particularly in densely populated areas of the Upper Tugela Location. Most people are buying fuelwood from Natal farmers living on the borders of the study area. This results in an economic leakage from the Upper Tugela Location and dependence on extralocally available sources of energy. There appear to be few attempts to establish woodlots at present in the Upper Tugela Location. Equitable access to local supplies of wood are curtailed. Renewable sources of energy such as thermal and photovoltaic solar energy, micro-hydro and wind generated power, and afforestation have been investigated as have non-renewable sources of energy such as grid electricity and commercial fuels. It is concluded that no single technical option adequately addresses the energy needs of the inhabitants of the Upper Tugela Location. Most of the renewable sources of energy, except wood, are too expensive for subsistence economies and can be unreliable as they are still at the developmental stage. It is recommended that electricity from the national grid should be made available to those who can afford it. The means to improving the distribution of commercial fuels in the Upper Tugela Location should be addressed. Woody biomass management and agroforestry programmes provide the best options for an energy strategy for the Upper Tugela Location as they are inexpensive, require little maintenance, are sustainable and reliable, and serve conservation requirements at the same time.

Thesis (MBA)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / Census 2011 put the rate of electrification in South Africa at 84 percent. Even though this is a positive outcome to the previously recorded 34 percent, it has served as a clear indication that the target for Universal Access to Electricity by 2014 as set by President Jacob Zuma is unlikely to be achieved. In June 2013, cabinet approved the implementation of the new household electrification strategy and in support of this decision the Department of Energy was tasked to develop a new electrification roadmap or implementation plan. The intention of this research study has been to contribute to the development of this strategic plan by analysing the status of electrification in KwaZulu-Natal, as extracted from the provincial Geographical Information System, in order to identify the optimal electrification roll out plan and to develop guiding principles for the electrification of the province. The research outcomes provide a view of the current state of electrification within the province, identify the major technical constraints which hinder the progress, and provide recommendations for implementation roll out for KwaZulu-Natal province. The finding of this research is that of the 497 799 thousand un-electrified houses, 169 506 HH are not electrifiable as there is not sufficient capacity on the existing networks to cater for these households. Of those, 132 007 households are dependent on the establishment and construction of new bulk infrastructure such as substations and lines, while 37 499 are dependent on the upgrade or refurbishment of the existing infrastructure. The research has identified and categorised the ‘critical’ bulk infrastructure that will benefit 5 000 households or more as well as the high impact infrastructure projects that cater for 3 000 households or more. The research has also identified municipalities that are above the average of 84 percent electrification and categorised these as quick win areas to help in the progression toward universal access. As the research has also identified the dark havens, named as such due to being less than 50 percent electrified and plagued by technical constraints which makes any electrification of these areas not possible in the next five to ten years. Recommendations for responding to all four categories of findings are put forward.