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PN Energy Services established a database on which all its approximately 59 000 customers are registered. All meters are independently registered so that if a meter is changed, its history is recorded for auditing purposes. The company has a toll-free 24-hour customer enquiry line. The data base also monitors each meter for electricity consumption, the data base being updated each time a transaction has taken place.

PN Energy Service's produces regular management information and exception reports. If it finds something which it cannot explain, it sends an inspector to check for possible meter tampering.

Initially, warning letters and customer service staff were sent to explain the dangers of electricity and that theft is illegal, but to little avail.

Nowadays a heavy-handed approach is taken to theft, and when it is discovered the supply is disconnected. When the customer is ready to be reconnected, a reconnection fee is charged to cover the costs.

The customer service staff of PN Energy Services hold regular workshops and meetings with the community to explain the best uses of electricity.

It has developed a number of posters showing, in Xhosa, the benefits of electricity - for example, how much it costs to watch TV, use an electric iron, boil water, etc.

Also, although not really necessary in Khayelitsha, the dangers are explained of using fossil-based fuels, wood, charcoal, paraffin and bottled gas.

Fires were common in Khayelitsha and, due to the proximity of houses, a fire can destroy a whole area before being brought under control.

Electrification has dramatically reduced the number of house fires in the township.

Another highly successful communication tool has been the Customer Commitment Guarantee produced by PN Energy Services - the first of its kind for a South African electricity utility.

On the basis of the experience gained in Khayelitsha, it has been established that normal business principles using delegated management, if applied to sub-economic environments, can be successful. The experience has also demonstrated that alternative solutions to electrification issues in South Africa can be both financially viable and at the same time provide a high level of customer satisfaction. Nearly 20 million people still do not have electricity in South Africa. The Kbayelitsha experience can be used and adapted to provide power to the people throughout the country and beyond, and eventually the lives of millions of people who have never known electricity can be substantially improved.