A South African energy startup, Utility Trading and Consulting Services (UtCS), is breaking new ground in the country’s electricity sector by helping municipalities and private consumers secure cheaper and more reliable power.
Founded by energy-focused writer Christo Nicholls, the company is leveraging a digital trading platform, MyMunic, to enable local governments not only to buy power more efficiently but also to sell excess electricity back into the national grid.
“We figured out how to enable municipalities to have a 360-degree approach towards bulk supply diversification, and encourage private investors, big and small, to securely have off-balance-sheet day-trading engagements with their local municipality,” Nicholls told reporters.
UtCS’ Funding and Growth
UtCS remains self-funded, a rarity in South Africa’s energy startup ecosystem where external investment is often crucial for survival.
Its ability to break even within a year underscores what Nicholls calls “the strength of a sustainable, profit-sharing business model.”
The company is now preparing to attract strategic investment to accelerate growth as it expands further into the private sector and scales operations across Southern Africa.
“Our next growth phase requires not just more partnerships with municipalities, but also collaboration with private investors who share our vision of affordable and sustainable electricity,” Nicholls explained.
Disrupting South Africa’s Municipal Power Supply
UtCS is addressing South Africa’s long-standing electricity challenges by offering municipalities a smarter way to purchase and distribute energy.
Currently working with five municipalities, the startup has helped optimise the bulk purchase of 228 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity.
This model, according to Nicholls, has shown that,
“municipal-day-trading is not just possible, but also lucrative, for both municipality and alternative suppliers.”
The MyMunic Digital Energy Platform
At the core of the company’s strategy is MyMunic, a proprietary digital platform that integrates Internet of Things (IoT) technology with municipal regulations and governance structures.
This platform enables municipalities to move beyond being just electricity consumers to becoming suppliers to the national grid.
Nicholls said, “What is also crucial to differentiation was to build a digital energy platform that can allow for a municipality to evolve from only a consumer of bulk supply electricity to a supplier of bulk electricity to the national grid.”
A Profitable and Sustainable Model
Unlike traditional energy consultants, UtCS earns revenue only from a percentage of the new gross profit it helps create through activating Small Scale Embedded Generation (SSEG) projects.
This results-driven model has already led the company to reach break-even within its first year of operations, marking it as one of the few energy startups in South Africa to achieve such rapid financial stability.
Expansion Beyond Municipalities
While municipalities remain the company’s main focus, UtCS is gradually expanding into the private sector.
With its first private clients already signed up in South Africa and Namibia, the startup is preparing for rapid expansion in the final quarter of 2025 and early 2026.
“We are busy with a slow expansion into the private sector, where we are positioning ourselves as a preferred affordable electricity partner,” Nicholls noted.
By combining sustainability, profitability, and technological innovation, UtCS is positioning itself as a key player in reshaping South Africa’s energy future, potentially offering a replicable model for other countries grappling with electricity shortages and affordability.
Talking Points
UtCS is a uniquely positioned South African startup redefining electricity access by enabling municipalities to act not just as consumers but as active traders in the national grid through its proprietary MyMunic digital platform, which blends IoT technology with complex municipal governance systems.
Unlike traditional energy firms, it operates on a results-based model, earning only when clients generate profit, a strategy that has already seen it break even within a year despite being self-funded.
Its innovation lies in providing municipalities and private investors with a 360-degree approach to bulk electricity diversification and trading, making power both more affordable and sustainable.
While the startup faces challenges such as regulatory hurdles, the need to build long-term trust, and potential competition from larger players, its early success and alignment of incentives place it in a strong position to become a key driver of South Africa’s energy transition and a replicable model for the wider region.
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