Management of electricity usage by household customers

Abstract

Management of electricity usage by household plays an important role in the growth of the country’s economy, and the avoidance of load shedding from Eskom. Electricity usage is very important for the growth of the economy and creation of job opportunities.

The management of electricity usage by household’s customers will play a very critical role in the growth of the country’s economy and the creation of jobs. The contribution of households in applying the electricity saving techniques will reduce the risk of load shedding from Eskom during summer and winter. The save usage of electricity will give Eskom enough chance to build power stations to keep up with the demands and the growth of the South African economy.

For the household customers to contribute positively, Eskom and the municipalities should conduct road shows to educate customers about the save usage of electrical appliances and the saving techniques that can be applied by households. Customer awareness campaigns should be conducted in both rural, urban and semi-urban areas.

It will be very important for Eskom to communicate with the municipalities to run the awareness campaigns in the urban areas due to the high demand of electricity by households coming from the urban areas. The majority of households who are using the high consuming appliances of electricity reside in the urban areas and can play a vital role in minimizing the risk of load shedding that affected the country negatively in 2008.

The quantitative research method was followed for this research. A questionnaire was used to collect the data from the household’s participants. Forty households from the five areas of Polokwane took part in the research totalling 200 participants.

It was discovered that the customer awareness campaigns were conducted by Eskom in the areas where they service customers, although there are some gaps in other areas where the customers are complaining about lack of road shows to teach households about the electricity saving tips. Municipalities in all the five areas of Polokwane where the research was conducted are still lagging behind with the customer’s awareness campaigns. However Eskom customer services and the municipalities can work together and conduct road shows to reach more customers in order to reduce the risk of load shedding and power interruptions.