Cape Town – Minister of Electricity and Energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has warned that Eskom could face severe financial difficulties, leading to more load shedding, if it doesn’t receive financial support.
“Essentially, you are faced with the following scenario: if you don’t provide the kind of financial support that is required, we are rightly going to plunge the country back into darkness,” EWN quoted the minister as saying.
This statement came during a National Assembly debate on Eskom’s proposed tariff increase, where political parties criticised the high rates granted by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA).
The debate focused on Eskom’s application to retrospectively recover R8 billion for the 2021/2022 financial year.
Parties expressed concerns over the affordability of electricity, with the Democratic Alliance highlighting the steep rise in costs for average households.
🚨Today in Parliament the DA’s Urgent Debate against Eskom’s outrageous R8-billion extra tariff, and 40% electricity tariff hike, is centre stage.
Over 100,000 people have signed the DA petition against the hike. Join the fight now at: https://t.co/eVMPGmDHlZ#StopPowerGrab pic.twitter.com/4BdclyZOjA
— Democratic Alliance (@Our_DA) September 19, 2024
Calls were made for a review of the tariff pricing policy and regulation of coal prices.
According to IOL, civil society groups in KwaZulu-Natal are also concerned about Eskom’s proposed 40% tariff hike for municipal consumers, fearing it will heavily impact low-income and middle-income earners.
Evashnee Naidu from Black Sash warned that social grant beneficiaries would struggle to afford both food and electricity, leading to food insecurity.
“This leads to a situation of food insecurity in the households of the poorest of the poor as they are unable to buy, knowing that they may not be able to afford to purchase electricity for an entire month to preserve their food,” the report quoted Naidu as saying.
Mervyn Abrahams of the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group argued that the increase, given stagnant wages, is unfair and could lead to more illegal connections.
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Picture: X/@Kgosientsho
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
