Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa reports that the Eskom board is considering lifting the current 1 000 MW allocation set aside for its Standard Offer Programme to 4 000 MW and extending the scheme beyond its initial three-year time horizon. Through the Standard Offer Programme Eskom can buy power from existing producers, mostly industrial groups, at a set price calculated based on the avoided cost of its own generation, including long-term purchases from independent power producers.