Pretoria - Mayor of Tshwane Randall Williams has added his voice to criticism against Eskom’s 18.65% tariff increase, saying it will have a detrimental effect on residents, businesses and the City’s financial sustainability.
This after the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) last week approved the power utility’s revenue application for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 financial years.
“The percentage increase is 18.65% based on Nersa’s approved tariff of 146.48c/kWh in the 2022/23 financial year. The Nersa-approved revenue is R334bn for the 2024/25 financial year, which translates to a tariff of 195.95c/kWh, resulting in a 12.74% increase based on the tariff of 173.80c/kWh Nersa approved tariff for the 2023/24 financial year,” the regulator said in a statement.
Reacting to the announcement, Williams expressed disappointment on behalf of Tshwane’s multiparty coalition government.
“This 18.65% increase is for the 2023/24 financial year, meaning it will kick in immediately this April. On top of this, Nersa has also approved a 12.7% increase for the next financial year, dealing residents with a deadly double blow,” he said.
He said the City had always been opposed to Eskom’s exorbitant price increases simply because residents can’t afford them, “especially now that we have been plunged into darkness with indefinite Stage 6 load shedding”.
“This tariff increase will have a detrimental effect on Tshwane residents and businesses, and the financial sustainability of the City, which is already in a precarious state,” Williams said.
He said he feared that the excessive price hike would lead to a possible escalation in illegal connections as the cost of electricity would become unsustainable for residents with lower income, resulting in revenue losses for the City and Eskom.
“For many businesses, electricity is a major production cost, especially within the manufacturing and industrial hubs of Tshwane. An increase of this level will significantly raise the cost of doing business in Tshwane. Both of these combined scenarios will lead to a massive loss of revenue for the City and job losses for our residents.”
Williams said that the City believed that Eskom should be limited to single-digit increases.
“This will incentivise investment and stimulate growth that is required by our economy to tackle unemployment and poverty, and to ensure that the City is positioned to provide sustainable service delivery to all Tshwane residents,” he said.
Pretoria News