Smart technology reshapes electricity market

DAR ES SALAAM: EXPANDING electricity system is entering a phase where technology could become as important as new generation capacity in determining how efficiently power is delivered, consumed and managed.

As demand rises, smart-metering technology is emerging as a tool for giving utilities, businesses and households real-time information on electricity use, helping identify waste, improve efficiency and reduce operating costs.

It is within this shift that SWAENERGY, a young Tanzanian technology company, is seeking a foothold in the smart-metre market, betting that locally developed digital solutions can transform electricity from a service that is simply consumed into one that can be actively monitored and managed.

SWAENERGY Co-Founder Elisha Kato says the company has invested about 250m/- (96,000 US dollars) since 2022 developing smart-metre technology, moving from research and prototypes to finished products as it seeks to compete with established international suppliers.

The company began under the name Lukuchap as a research project supported by the East African Science, Technology and Innovation Commission (EASTECO).

Private investors later joined, helping finance prototype development and the transition towards commercial production.

Turning electricity use into data The significance of smart meters lies not simply in replacing conventional metres, but in expanding the information available to electricity users.

A conventional metre records consumption, while smart technology can provide more detailed information about when and how electricity is being used.

For households, this can help identify consumption patterns and appliances driving electricity costs. Lights left on, inefficient appliances or air conditioners running unnecessarily can add to expenditure without users immediately recognising the source.

SWAENERGY combines smartmetre hardware with software that allows customers to monitor consumption, purchase electricity remotely and make decisions based on usage patterns.

The metre therefore becomes part of a wider digital energymanagement system.

For businesses operating several premises, consumption data could help identify inefficiencies across locations and manage electricity as a recurring operating cost.

The broader shift is from simply measuring electricity to managing it.

From telecom towers to the wider market

SWAENERGY’s initial research was partly shaped by the needs of telecommunications companies operating large networks of towers and remote sites.

Mr Kato says operators faced difficulties monitoring electricity consumption across hundreds of locations, particularly where sites depended on generators.

“Let’s say a company with about 300 sites, for example, cannot easily send personnel to every location simply to check meters, collect information or recharge them. The exercise consumes time and fuel and introduces additional operational risks,” he says.

The company piloted its technology with such users and says the experience demonstrated the potential of remote monitoring. It subsequently began engaging Tanzania Electric Supply Company (TANESCO) as it explored opportunities in the wider electricity market.

Competing for the TANESCO market

The TANESCO opportunity could be significant, but so is the competitive challenge.

Mr Kato says the utility works with domestic and international suppliers, including Chinese manufacturers, whose economies of scale, production capacity, capital resources and established track records give them considerable advantages.

“For a relatively young Tanzanian company, competing against those suppliers is difficult,” he says.

SWAENERGY’s response is to emphasise local knowledge and proximity to the market. Mr Kato argues that Tanzanian manufacturers can design and adapt products around local operating conditions rather than simply introducing technology developed elsewhere.

For the company, securing TANESCO business would mean more than winning a contract. It would demonstrate that locally developed technology can compete in a strategic infrastructure market.

The challenge of scaling

SWAENERGY currently targets production capacity of about 400,000 metres annually, a fraction of the potential demand Mr Kato identifies.

The next challenge is scaling. The company needs additional capital to expand manufacturing, strengthen supply chains and meet the quality, technical and delivery requirements of major utilities.

Happyness Mallya, a software engineer at SWAENERGY, says moving from hundreds of thousands of metres towards millions requires a different level of financing and industrial capacity.

That makes access to capital and institutional support critical if local manufacturers are to compete with larger international suppliers.

Beyond the metre

SWAENERGY’s ambition also extends beyond hardware.

Ms Mallya says the company is developing software, including the WATTON Energy Management Platform, designed to provide customers with consumption information and digital energy-management services.

This creates the possibility of a recurring technology business rather than one based solely on selling metres.

For utilities and businesses, connected metres can generate data that supports monitoring, planning and efficiency improvements. For consumers, the information can encourage more informed energy decisions.

This makes smart metering part of a broader digital transformation of the electricity sector.

As Tanzania’s electricity demand grows, efficiency will become increasingly important alongside investment in generation, transmission and distribution. Better data can help users reduce waste while giving utilities greater visibility into consumption.

Beyond Tanzania

SWAENERGY is also exploring markets beyond Tanzania, including Mozambique’s EDM, where the company has already started business.

The regional opportunity is significant because many African power markets face similar challenges, rising demand, infrastructure constraints and the need for better consumption data.

If its technology proves commercially viable in Tanzania, the company could use that experience as a platform for expansion into other African markets.

But the immediate test remains domestic

SWAENERGY has moved from a research project to prototypes, private investment and commercial products. Its next challenge is proving that a Tanzanian technology company can compete on quality, price, reliability and scale.

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If it succeeds, the impact could extend beyond smart meters, demonstrating that Tanzania can build local technological and manufacturing capacity around critical infrastructure while capturing more value from the digitalisation of its growing electricity sector.

The future of the power market, therefore, may not depend only on how much electricity Tanzania generates, but increasingly on how intelligently it measures, understands and manages the electricity it already has.