Prepaid Electricity Vending & Revenue Protection Services

Saldanha Bay Municipality is seeking a single service provider to supply, install, and manage a fully integrated, STS-compliant prepaid electricity vending, data management, revenue protection, and Automated Meter Reading (AMR) system for the period 1 July 2027 to 30 June 2032. The municipality covers Vredenburg, Jacobs Bay, Saldanha, Langebaan, Paternoster, and Hopefield, with approximately 26,550 prepayment electricity meters. The contract includes a hosted vending platform meeting NRS 009-6-10 XMLVend, STS 600 and IEC 62055-41 requirements, integration with the MUNSOFT financial system and mSCOA, a white-labelled consumer portal, a network of about 80 existing online vendors, and a 24/7 call centre. Optional smart components, including AMR, SSEG management, and demand response, must be natively integrated into the core vending platform rather than subcontracted. Field services cover audits under NRS 055 and SANS 10142, tamper detection, disconnections, GIS mapping, and handheld data capture, with at least two audit teams stationed in the municipal area.

Bidders must pass a pre-qualification stage scoring 100% (31 of 31 points), which requires ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification, STS and XMLVend compliance, PASA third-party payment provider registration, EWSETA skills development accreditation, SARPA registration, R20 million public liability insurance, and a regional office within the Western Cape. Bidders must then reach at least 80 out of 100 functionality points and a minimum of 77 out of 85 points in a live, practical demonstration in which slides, mock-ups, and roadmaps do not count as proof. Evaluation uses an 80/20 price and preference point system (B-BBEE and locality). Pricing must be exclusive of VAT, the transaction fee is fixed at 1.89% in year one, and the bid is evaluated on total five-year cost. A compulsory information session takes place at 12:00 on 18 November 2026 at the Electrical Committee Room, 38 Church Street, Vredenburg. Submissions close at 12:00 on 11 December 2026 at the Investment Centre tender box, 15 Main Road, Vredenburg. Late, faxed, or emailed bids are not accepted.

For the municipality, the contract aims to reduce revenue losses from meter tampering and bypassing, improve collection and reconciliation of prepaid and arrears payments, and support the ongoing conversion to prepayment meters. The specification requires performance measures, including a 95% audit completion threshold with a 5% penalty for repeated non-compliance, a 99.95% system uptime commitment, and commissioning within two months of award. Prospective bidders should review the full tender document and specification on eTenders and contact the listed officials before the closing date.