Electricity tarriffs to increase by 5.23%

Electricity tarriffs to increase by 5.23%

The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) has revealed the electricity tariff increase for the 2018/2019 financial year.

Nersa, Eskom
Steve Bhengu

Nersa granted Eskom a 5.23 percent electricity tariff hike, instead of the power utility's requested 19.9 percent.

 

Nersa chairperson, Jacob Modise, said they will be publishing reasons for their decisions after confidentiality clauses have been cleared.

 

Modise said balancing their mandate as an economic regulator for both producers and consumers of energy is not the easiest task.

 

He also added that from next year onwards, Nersa will be expecting better planned multi-year tariff hikes that create economic certainty instead of yearly increases.

 

''For the next tariff application from Eskom, we not looking for a one-year tariff application, we looking for a multi-year tariff application.

 

''It's critical that we give certainty to the economy, industry and consumers on the price path of how electricity is going to be tangible over the next coming years.''

The new tariff increase comes after Nersa conducted nationwide public hearings, during which companies, organisations and individuals made submissions.

 

Concerns were raised over the impact of Eskom's steep electricity price increase on consumers, especially bearing in mind the struggling economy and the power utility’s financial crisis.

 

Meanwhile, Public Enterprises Minister, Lynn Brown on Friday held a special media briefing to introduce two of the newly appointed Eskom board members, Professor Malegapuru Makgoba and Professor Tshepo Mongalo.

 

Brown said the two appointments come at a time of Eskom's  "well publicised challenges", with the hope that the new board will clean up the embattled state-owned entity by first starting with the appointment of its new CEO ''as a matter of priority".

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