Joburg City Power ordered to pay Eskom outstanding R1bn

Eskom

Cape Town — The Johannesburg High Court has ordered the City of Joburg and City Power to pay Eskom an outstanding R1.073 billion, including interest, for its unpaid electricity account.

In a statement, Eskom said it approached the court in May in an attempt to get the city’s power utility to pay its outstanding debts after it started to default on its payments, dating back to October 2023.

“When the matter was heard on 4 June, the total amount owed to Eskom was R3.4 billion. The city in response to Eskom’s application, brought a counterclaim against Eskom for R3.4 billion alleging potential over-billing and that, as a result it has applied an automatic set-off against Eskom electricity account.” it said.

The court dismissed the counterclaim by the City of Joburg, consequently dismissing the automatic set-off claim. Eskom wrote a letter to the City of Joburg and City Power to pay the April and May 2024 payments of R3.4 billion.

According to The Citizen, Judge Maenetje AJ ordered the two entities to settle the outstanding bill of R1 billion.

“The first respondent, alternatively the second respondent, further alternatively the first and second respondents jointly and severally, the one paying the other to be absolved, are ordered to pay interest on the amount of R1 073 593 894,38 at a rate prescribed in terms of the Prescribed Rate of Interest Act, 55 of 1975 calculated from the date the application was served on the first and second respondents until date of final payment,” the judgment read.

In response, City Power said it noted the judgement in the case and said it did not agree with it and will reserve its right to appeal.

“We have briefed our attorneys, and we will issue the statement later in a day on our next course of action,” it said.

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Compiled by Matthew Petersen

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