Johannesburg residents are increasingly switching to gas after the recent spate of electricity power outages, said Egoli Gas, the city’s gas supplier.
But while gas is promoted as more reliable and environmentally friendly than coal-generated electricity, only a quarter of the population in the greater Johannesburg area has access to the gas network.
Currently, 12Â 500 people make use of the natural gas that the company pipes in from Mozambique.
Egoli Gas general manager Trevor Patton said the number of people interested in converting to gas is rising.
“Piped natural gas is more reliable than electricity, and our consumers do not experience shortages or outages,” said Patton. “It is available on tap whenever required, just like a water reticulation system.”
Using gas reduces energy consumption because it provides instant heat, he said, explaining that it is used only when heat is required for hot water or cooking.
Gas is also more environmentally friendly than coal-fired electricity because it produces lower carbon dioxide emissions. This is because there are fewer hydrocarbons in natural gas, according to Patton.
Egoli Gas provides technological support to users to help them improve their energy efficiency and safety.
The gas company lowered connection costs in mid-2006, making it more attractive to hook up to the gas network.
Before last year’s price change, it cost up to R7Â 000 to connect to the gas mains if you lived opposite the gas line. If you lived on the same side of the street as the gas line, it cost about R3Â 500.
Now, the cost of a new connection depends on the number of gas appliances you use. If you have five appliances, the connection fee is waived but you pay a deposit of R500 per appliance. With four appliances, you pay a R342 connection fee and a R2Â 000 deposit. Having one gas appliance is the most expensive, costing R3Â 990 for the connection and a R300 deposit. Reconnections cost around R649 plus a deposit.
Realising that the previous costs were prohibitive for some users, the gas company has decided to grow its consumer base and recover the installation costs over time, according to an Egoli Gas call centre agent.
Egoli Gas levies a basic charge of around R65 a month and charges R123 per gigajoule (GJ). The call agent said that one GJ is equivalent to about 20kg of gas.
A household of four using gas only for a stove might pay up to R250 a month. This figure could rise to about R300 if the family was also using a gas geyser.
But you have to live somewhere along the 1Â 200km gas network to reduce your dependence on electricity and make the switch.
A map of the network shows that it extends to Craighall Park in the north, Kensington in the east, Rosettenville in the south and Industria in the west. If you are close to the gas line, you may have to pay to have the pipeline extended. This could cost up to R400 a metre, according to the call agent.
The agent said Egoli is considering extending the network and is busy creating a database of callers who are not on the network to establish which regions have the greatest demand for gas.