The minister warned that if this continues, Eskom will collapse
Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has given his first Energy Action Plan (EAP) update since being reappointed as electricity minister and called out indebted municipalities for their failure to pay their Eskom power bills.
Ramokgopa, who now also heads the energy department, previously under Gwede Mantashe’s jurisdiction in minerals and energy, called out municipalities for the staggering R78 billion they owe to Eskom.
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“Collectively, municipalities owe Eskom R78 billion, and a lot of this is irrecoverable.”
Ramokgopa said:
There’s no possibility under the sun that we are going to collect that R78 billion. It’s important that we resolve this situation.
Ramokgopa stated this spells trouble for the power utility, “Eskom needs this money to reinvest back into its infrastructure.
Municipalities have to pay that money, but objectively, they simply don’t have the means to do so,” he said during a briefing on Monday.
The minister warned that if this continues, Eskom will collapse.
“To give you the magnitude of the problem, if we don’t resolve this issue, our projection is that at the current rate, by 2050, Eskom will be owed R3.1 trillion. Eskom will collapse. Generation capacity is going to be compromised. So, it’s important that we resolve this issue. This is the most urgent task confronting us.”
Ramokgopa said:
It is municipality-related, but we can’t fold our arms; we need to help them from a technical point of view.
Ramokgopa also warned that this issue is contributing to the blackouts Tshwane and Johannesburg are implementing in some areas, even though the country just celebrated 100 days without load shedding.
The municipalities have said they are implementing load reduction in areas where the demand is higher than the infrastructure can handle.
“In the solution, we must protect the interests of Eskom as a going concern, ensure that municipalities can collect revenue and protect the interests of the user. Because when that distribution infrastructure fails, which is providing electricity to 50 houses, there’ll be 10 to 20 houses that have been paying diligently but become collateral damage.”
Ramokgopa said:
The biggest victims of all of this are the end consumers, and, by definition, the South African economy.
Ramokgopa also touched on the sensitive issue of electricity tariffs, saying, “It is important that we review electricity tariff models to enhance affordability and expand access. Everyone must have access to electricity, and once they have access, we must ensure they can afford it. That’s something that is going to receive our attention.”
READ: Joburg’s poor will be worst hit by City Power’s 12.72% tariff hike and R200 monthly fee
Meanwhile, Eskom celebrated another milestone.
Taking to Twitter/X, the utility announced that six of its generation power stations recorded an energy availability factor (EAF) of 70% and higher: Medupi, Kusile, Matimba, Matla, Hendrina, and Grootvlei.
Today marked a significant achievement for six of Eskom’s generation power stations, which recorded an energy availability factor (EAF) of 70% and higher, namely Medupi, Kusile, Matimba, Matla, Hendrina and Grootvlei
One station stood out with an… pic.twitter.com/hQNkd5sti3
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) July 8, 2024
“One station stood out with an exceptional EAF of 91.9%. Despite facing unplanned outages totalling 12 071 MW, the available capacity increased to 32 910 MW, a level last achieved in August 2021. This outstanding performance resulted in our real-time EAF standing at 67.9%,” Eskom said.
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