Small business
Does solar pay for a spaza shop or tuck shop in South Africa in 2026?
Yes — fridges make the case. A spaza running drinks coolers and a freezer all day uses most of its power in daylight, exactly when panels produce. At a 2026/27 Joburg top-block price of 436.59 c/kWh incl. VAT, a shop using 12 kWh a day spends about R1 570 a month on refrigeration alone. A small hybrid system that covers the day and a battery for the evening cuts most of that, and the NEF Spaza Shop Support Fund allows up to R50 000 for infrastructure including refrigeration.
Updated 27 October 2026 · Worked examples use published tariffs; not a formal quote, credit decision or financial advice.
Answer first: A spaza shop is one of the best-shaped loads for solar in South Africa. The coolers and freezer run all day, the shop is open while the sun shines, and every kWh comes off a prepaid meter at the household top-block price. Panels cover the daytime cold chain; a modest battery carries the evening trade. Price it on monthly rand saved per rand spent, and use the funding and subscription routes that exist for township retail. Related: solar for small businesses · fridges and freezers on solar · prepaid tokens vs solar.
Why spaza shops matter — and why power hurts them
Spaza shops contribute about R150 billion a year, roughly 5.2% of GDP, and employ around 2.6 million people, according to the Wetility and A2Pay launch statement (Wetility / A2Pay announcement (Bizcommunity, 20 Sept 2024)). The same statement records that up to 64% of township businesses halted operations during load shedding. Load shedding has eased, but the electricity price has not: NERSA approved 9.01% for municipal supply from 1 July 2026 (NERSA media statement (March 2026)). For a shop living on thin margins, the monthly prepaid spend is the cost line solar attacks first.
What the fridges cost on prepaid
Most spaza shops trade from a home or a structure on a residential stand and buy power on a prepaid meter. In Johannesburg the 2026/27 City Power residential prepaid blocks are 334.03 c (0–350 kWh), 383.16 c (351–500 kWh) and 436.59 c above 500 kWh, incl. VAT (City of Johannesburg 2026/27 electricity tariffs). Shop refrigeration stacks on top of the household’s own use, so it lands on the upper blocks.
| Shop load | kWh a day | kWh a month | Cost at 436.59 c |
|---|---|---|---|
| One upright cooler + one chest freezer | 8 | 240 | ≈R1 048 |
| Two upright coolers + one chest freezer | 12 | 360 | ≈R1 572 |
| Three coolers + two freezers + lights and till | 18 | 540 | ≈R2 358 |
The kWh-a-day figures are worked examples: read the energy label on each of your own fridges or the supplier’s data sheet, add lighting, the till and a phone charger, and check the total against your prepaid slips. The rand column uses the published City Power top block; Cape Town, Tshwane and eThekwini sit in a similar range (tariffs 2026).
What solar takes back
Fridges run 24 hours, but they work hardest in the heat of the day when the door opens most. Panels cover that daytime load directly. A battery covers trading hours after sunset and keeps the cold chain running overnight. For the 12 kWh-a-day shop:
- Daytime (07:00–17:00): roughly 6–7 kWh, covered directly by 2.5–4 kWp of panels.
- Evening and night: roughly 5–6 kWh, covered by 5–10 kWh of usable LiFePO₄ storage charged by midday surplus.
- Cloudy days: the grid tops up automatically on a hybrid system — no stock lost, no manual switching.
Covering 80% of the 360 kWh a month saves about 288 kWh × 436.59 c ≈ R1 260 a month, around R15 100 a year at today’s tariff, rising with every July increase. Bigger shops with three coolers save proportionally more.
What it costs to buy
A fully installed 5 kW hybrid with 5–10 kWh of lithium storage is typically quoted at about R72 000–R120 000 in 2026 (5 kW cost desk). A shop-sized 3–3.6 kW hybrid with a 5 kWh battery sits below that range. At R1 260 a month saved, a R70 000 shop system pays back in under five years on the fridges alone, before counting stock you no longer lose to outages.
Insist on a CoC and a proper earth — solar CoC — and anti-theft mounting for panels and a lockable battery cabinet — theft protection.
Funding: the NEF Spaza Shop Support Fund
The National Empowerment Fund’s Spaza Shop Support Fund offers support of up to R100 000, structured as a split of debt and grant (NEF Spaza Shop Support Fund brochure):
| Component | Maximum |
|---|---|
| Stock | R40 000 |
| Assets and infrastructure — building upgrades, systems, refrigeration, shelving, security | R50 000 |
| Business management training | R10 000 |
| Total | R100 000 |
The fund requires purchases from accredited local suppliers. A shop owner who replaces old coolers with efficient units under the infrastructure component cuts the load before the solar is even sized — the cheapest kWh is the one the fridge never uses. Apply through the official NEF channels only; ignore anyone who charges a fee to “guarantee” approval.
Subscriptions and daily payments
Wetility and A2Pay launched a solar-as-a-service offer for spaza shops in September 2024, rolled out across A2Pay’s network of over 6 000 merchants, with daily payments through the point-of-sale system, anti-theft measures and rotational power to fridges and freezers (Wetility / A2Pay announcement (Bizcommunity, 20 Sept 2024)). News24 reported shop backup plans from about R165 a day at the time (News24 (15 Sept 2024)). Compare any daily fee with the electricity it replaces: R165 a day is about R5 000 a month, so that price buys resilience for a larger shop rather than a saving for a small one. A shop saving R1 260 a month needs a plan well below that to come out ahead.
Tax for registered businesses
A registered spaza business that owns its solar system and uses it in the trade deducts 100% of the cost in the year it is first used under section 12B — section 12B for small businesses. Keep the invoice and CoC with the business records.
Buying smart
- Buy through a registered installer who stocks from an established wholesaler — ACDC Dynamics, Voltex, ARB, Herholdts, DBS Energy or SONAH Group — so warranty swaps happen locally (trusted wholesalers).
- Ask for usable battery kWh and the price per usable kWh, not just the sticker kWh (sticker vs usable).
- Put the fridges, lights, till and router on the backup board; leave kettles and heaters off it (essential loads).
- Check the prepaid meter keeps working with the inverter and that the installer does not export through a prepaid meter (prepaid meters and solar).
Bottom line
Spaza refrigeration runs all day on top-block prepaid power, which makes it one of the best solar cases in the country. A shop using 12 kWh a day spends about R1 570 a month on fridges at Joburg’s 2026/27 top block; a small hybrid with a battery takes back around R1 260 of that. Use the NEF fund for efficient fridges and infrastructure, compare subscriptions on rand saved, and buy from installers with local stock and support.
Quick questions
How much electricity does a spaza shop use?
Refrigeration dominates. Add up the kWh-per-day figure on each cooler and freezer energy label. A shop with two upright coolers and a chest freezer commonly lands in the 8–15 kWh a day range; read your own labels and prepaid slips.
What size solar system does a spaza shop need?
Size panels to the daytime fridge load plus lights and the till, and the battery to the evening trading hours. For a 12 kWh-a-day shop that is roughly a 3–5 kW hybrid inverter, 2.5–4 kWp of panels and 5–10 kWh of usable lithium storage.
Is there funding for spaza shop solar?
The NEF Spaza Shop Support Fund offers up to R100 000 as a split of debt and grant: up to R40 000 for stock, up to R50 000 for assets and infrastructure such as refrigeration, shelving and security, and R10 000 for training.
Is a solar subscription good for a spaza shop?
It removes the upfront cost. Wetility and A2Pay launched a daily-payment solar service for spaza shops in 2024, with rotational fridge and freezer power. Compare the daily fee with the electricity it replaces.