There are gaps in South Africa's ability to effectively localise manufacturing and fully capture the economic benefits of the energy transition that is being driven by rapid solar PV expansion, rising electricity tariffs and private sector investment, says industry organisation the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA).

This rapid growth in demand presents opportunities for local manufacturing of certain components, but local manufacturing participation in the solar value chain remains limited. Most high-value components, such as PV modules, inverters and trackers and lithium-ion batteries, are still imported.

“South Africa is experiencing a solar boom, but we are not yet fully translating that momentum into local industrial growth, especially in areas of the value chain where it makes sense to do so,” says SAPVIA CEO Dr Rethabile Melamu.

“Without urgent policy alignment and a clear, consistent demand pipeline, and industrial support interventions, including long-term commitment to provision of manufacturing and tax incentives, the opportunity to build a competitive local manufacturing sector could slip away,” she says.

The current proposed tariffs on components need to be implemented gradually and cautiously, so as not to stifle energy-security imperatives, but strengthen local manufacturing and, thereby, create much-needed jobs.

Localisation must be approached strategically and pragmatically. The focus should be on targeted segments where South Africa can build a competitive advantage and scale over time, Melamu states.

The country has made progress in developing local capabilities in balance-of-system components, including mounting structures, cables and inverters, which have lower barriers to entry and align with existing industrial capabilities.

South Africa faces significant challenges in scaling manufacturing of higher-value components owing to global competition, input costs and infrastructure constraints, she notes.

“Smart localisation is needed. We need to identify where we can compete, where we can create jobs, and how we can integrate into regional and global value chains.”

Growing renewable-energy demand across the Southern African and the broader African region presents an opportunity for South Africa to position itself as a regional manufacturing hub.

Countries across the Southern African Development Community are increasing their renewable-energy ambitions, potentially unlocking additional scale for locally produced components.

“There is no trade-off between localisation and deployment if policy is well designed, but this requires coordination across energy, industrial and trade policy, as well as strong public-private collaboration,” says Melamu.

SAPVIA is calling for greater policy certainty and alignment across government departments, targeted industrial incentives linked to realistic localisation goals, investment in skills development aligned with industry needs and improved infrastructure and logistics to support manufacturing competitiveness.

However, a resilient industrialisation agenda should be underpinned by reliability and affordability of electricity, which remains a work in progress, she adds.

South Africa added between 2.5 GW and 3 GW of solar PV capacity in the past two years, with the majority coming from embedded generation for commercial and industrial installations and, increasingly, the utility-scale private offtake market.

Rooftop solar adoption surged in response to record levels of loadshedding in 2023 and 2024, fundamentally reshaping the electricity market. This adoption trend has receded, but continues to gradually increase.

SAPVIA has provided recommendations on components that South Africa is well-poised to competitively manufacture locally and to scale for local use and potentially also for export.

Further, while the private offtake market is also taking off rapidly, the speed of its implementation will be highly reliant of rapid deployment of grid infrastructure.

“Manufacturers, however, require certainty. They need visibility on future demand over a five- to ten-year horizon, procurement and policy certainty and stability to justify the significant capital investment required for manufacturing facilities.

“If we get the policy framework right, solar PV can drive inclusive growth, create jobs and position the country as a leader in the regional energy economy,” Melamu says.