eThekwini electricity tariffs 2026/27: solar payback for Durban homes

Answer first: Durban’s flat domestic tariff makes the solar maths simple: every kWh your roof replaces is worth 357.47 c excl. VAT, about R4.11 incl., at any hour. The two levers that decide your payback are how much of your own solar you use, and how big an inverter you register, because eThekwini bills solar homes per kVA. Related: eThekwini SSEG feed-in and network access · 2026 tariffs across SA · metro tariffs desk.

The 2026/27 eThekwini numbers

eThekwini implemented a 12.72% average increase in 2025/26 and applied for 9% in 2026/27; NERSA approved it (NERSA Reasons for Decision, eThekwini tariffs FY2026/27). The municipality’s cost-of-supply study pointed to a required 11.8%, so the city is still pricing below its own cost estimate. Residential lines from the decision:

The SSEG lines are covered in detail in our eThekwini SSEG answer.

What 9% means for an 800 kWh Durban household

On the flat domestic scale, 800 kWh costs 800 × 357.47 c = R2 859.76 excl. VAT, about R3 289 incl. VAT. Last year the same month cost about R3 017 incl. That is R272 more each month, roughly R3 260 a year, for identical usage.

What a 5 kW hybrid saves in Durban

Durban’s humid coastal sky produces less than the Highveld. PVGIS models about 1 466 kWh per kWp a year for a north-facing 25° array in Durban — between 111 and 134 kWh per kWp a month (EU JRC PVGIS v5.2 (1 kWp, 25° north-facing, 14% system loss; run 27 Oct 2026)). A 5.5 kWp array makes about 670 kWh in an average month. Assume 450 kWh is used in the home (directly or via the battery) and 150 kWh is exported after losses:

That is about R20 220 a year. On a R100 000 install (SolarZA price guide (updated 28 Jan 2026) places 5 kW hybrids at R80 000–R120 000) payback is about five years at flat 2026/27 prices and about four and a quarter years if eThekwini keeps raising tariffs by 9% a year. An R80 000 system lands near four years flat.

The inverter-size trap that is unique to Durban

Because the network-access charge is billed per kVA of inverter capacity, oversizing costs you every month:

• 5 kVA inverter: ≈R442 a month incl. VAT
• 8 kVA inverter: ≈R707 a month
• 10 kVA inverter: ≈R884 a month

An 8 kVA unit where a 5 kVA does the job adds about R265 a month — over R3 000 a year — and stretches payback on a R100 000 system by almost a year. Size the inverter to the loads that run at the same time (kettle, microwave, pool pump, a borehole) and let the battery and panels do the rest — what size inverter.

Store, don’t export

A Durban kWh you store and use at night saves ≈411 c; the same kWh exported earns ≈185 c. The ≈226 c difference is what a battery earns on every kWh of surplus it captures. A household that moves 10 kWh a day of midday surplus into the evening earns roughly R680 a month from the battery alone, on top of the outage cover. If you are too busy to read the full sizing guide — get a 16 kWh battery that can be expanded later. It is the sweet spot on rand per usable kWh, and 48 V DC is the oldest, most proven home hybrid architecture. Coastal humidity favours an indoor battery position — battery indoor vs outdoor · battery sizing.

Is eThekwini’s residential TOU tariff worth it with a battery?

The TOU tariff spreads 523.82 c peak against 193.83 c off-peak, excl. VAT — 330 c of difference before VAT. For a household with a battery and solar that already covers the evening, most remaining grid purchases fall in off-peak hours at about 223 c incl., far below the flat 411 c. Against that you pay a R282.10 basic charge excl. (≈R324 incl.) that the flat scale does not carry. The break-even is easy to check: at the flat scale an off-peak kWh costs ≈411 c, at TOU ≈223 c, so you need about 2 070 kWh of off-peak grid purchases a year — roughly 172 kWh a month — before the basic charge is covered, and that only holds if the battery keeps you off the 602 c peak. Confirm the TOU hours on the City’s tariff schedule before switching. For battery-only arbitrage maths see battery without solar.

Durban businesses

Business and General Scale 1 Option 1 moved to 415.47 c/kWh excl. VAT in the high season (+12.19%) and 400.89 c in the low season, with a R528.16 monthly basic charge; Option 2 is a flat 403.65 c. Commercial prepaid scales 10, 11 and 14 pay 448.18 c/kWh (NERSA Reasons for Decision, eThekwini tariffs FY2026/27). Daytime-heavy businesses recover solar faster than homes — restaurants and bakeries · Section 12B.

Bottom line

Durban homes pay ≈411 c incl. VAT for every kWh in 2026/27. A right-sized 5 kVA hybrid with 5.5 kWp of panels and a 16 kWh expandable battery saves about R1 685 a month after network access and pays back in four to five years. Keep the inverter tight, store surplus instead of exporting it, and compare quotes on the same brief — read your municipal bill · read a quote.

Quick questions

What is the eThekwini electricity tariff for 2026/27?

Domestic Scales 3, 4, 8, 9 and 13 pay 357.47 c/kWh excl. VAT from 1 July 2026, up 9% from 327.95 c. That is about 411 c/kWh incl. VAT. Domestic Scale 12 pays 232.29 c/kWh.

Does eThekwini have a residential time-of-use tariff?

Yes. The 2026/27 residential TOU tariff charges R282.10 a month plus 523.82 c peak, 261.70 c standard and 193.83 c off-peak per kWh, all excl. VAT.

What does a solar home pay eThekwini each month?

Registered residential SSEG customers pay a network-access charge of R76.83 per kVA of inverter capacity per month excl. VAT, and receive 160.52 c/kWh excl. VAT for exported energy.

Should Durban homes oversize the inverter?

No. The network-access charge is billed on inverter kVA, so every extra kVA costs about R88 a month incl. VAT whether you use it or not. Size the inverter to your real simultaneous load.