On May 27th, RAP principal Janine Migden-Ostrander spoke at the inaugural International Energy Service Company Financing Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa. The conference, hosted by World Bank Group member IFC, highlighted international best practices to increase local awareness of the energy service company (ESCO) model for addressing capacity constraints in the South African energy market. With a local environment characterized by rolling black-outs, razor-thin reserve margins, an aging coal fleet, and increasing load growth, Ms. Migden-Ostrander provided international experience with energy efficiency as a dependable, least-cost option for delivering reliability. Including efficiency in integrated resource planning (IRP) also has societal benefits, such as providing local jobs and contributing to energy independence and energy security. Pivotal in establishing the right regulatory framework is providing incentives to the utilities and municipalities to implement energy efficiency by allowing them to recover program costs, recover the lost revenues resulting from reduced sales through decoupling, and earn an incentive payment comparable to return on equity for a power plant. Energy efficiency can play a significant role in addressing South Africa’s energy challenges in the short and long term.