AFRICAN STORIES: SOUTHAFRICA

In early 2008 South Africa’s state electricity utility Eskom 
was forced to roll out national power cuts as it was unable 
to meet energy demand. This “load shedding” is said to 
have cost the economy around R50bn (US$3.2bn) as 
shopping malls saw periods of darkness and mines had to 
temporarily cease operations. And while most South 
Africans and businesses felt frustrated by the challenges, 
one electrical engineer saw a massive opportunity. 
Johan Theron (68) is the inventor of PowerGuard, an 
innovation that allows businesses to moderate and control 
their electricity demand. This leads to more efficient power 
usage, to help reduce cuts and their overall electricity bill. 
The technology helps businesses to direct power to areas 
most needed and reduce demand in areas least needed 
during certain times. For example, in the mornings a hotel 
might be using more power as guests are showering, 
breakfast is being prepared and a conference kicks off. To 
ensure that the electricity doesn’t cut out during these 
peak times and to reduce costs, PowerGuard allows 
control over where power is directed. For instance, 
geysers can be staggered to reheat water (once guests 
have showered) at a later stage when there is less 
demand for electricity. 
“To put it into financial terms, we could save a hotel with 
a 100 rooms… between R10,000 to R20,000 ($640 to 
$1,280) a month,” Theron told How we made it in Africa . 
He has also developed another product, called the Elon, 
which is an easy-to-install technology that allows 
customers to seamlessly switch between their utility 
power supply and solar power to efficiently heat water. 
Combined with the PowerGuard technology, operators can 
supplement just enough utility power with their solar 
power capacity to ensure their water is properly heated, 
even on cloudy days. 
His innovation earned him a nomination for this year’s 
Innovation Prize for Africa. 
Beyond South Africa 
While load shedding made a comeback in 2014 and 2015, 
Eskom has stated there will be no more scheduled power 
cuts for the 2016/2017 financial year. However, electricity 
tariffs have risen considerably and placed a burden on 
businesses and Theron sees a large market for 
PowerGuard amongst companies looking to reduce their 
electricity bill and prevent power trips. 
He added that it can take between eight and 24 months for 
clients to see returns on their PowerGuard investment, 
depending on the system. “If they have got a boiler 
system they very often amortise within a year. If we only 
do the air-cons it can take up to almost two years before 
they amortise.” 
However, Theron has his eyes on other African markets, 
where regular power cuts are far more frequent. His 
solution can already be found in Namibia, but the 
company is looking to expand elsewhere on the continent. 
“If you look at places like Zambia and Angola, for 
example, they have enormous amounts of power outages 
and, at the moment, that is where this product is being 
aimed.” 
Solving Africa’s challenges 
Theron, who designed electronics for mining company 
Anglo American for years before starting his own 
business, said one of the greatest impediments to 
innovation in Africa is lack of finance. For example, just 
certifying new technology can cost thousands, which can 
be especially limiting for small companies or start-up 
entrepreneurs with great solutions, but small budgets. 
However, he believes that the innovations that will be 
successful in Africa will be those that are affordable and 
reliable.
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ENTREPRENUER SOUTHAFRICA Inventor wants to reduce your cost of electricity

In early 2008 South Africa’s state electricity utility Eskom was forced to roll out national power cuts as it was unable to meet energy de...

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Inventor wants to reduce your cost of electricity

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