The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SACCI) encourages Eskom to continue to communicate with the Business Community on the status of the power grid over the short to medium term.
According to the CEO of SACCI, Neren Rau “We understand that accidents do happen and luckily local businesses have been innovative in adapting operational models to unforeseen power outages.
“The key to ensuring that South Africa achieves optimal economic activity is certainty over power supply. Eskom has fostered a culture of open engagement with the Business Community and SACCI trusts that this relationship can be strengthened even further.
“The need for certainty over power-schedules is acute due to two important considerations: recent sub- optimal production levels and seasonal sales.”
Rau adds that South Africa is now emerging from significant economic pressures following the protracted industrial action in the mining and manufacturing sectors.
“Businesses in these sectors urgently need to use the remaining time left in the year to recoup lost production. In the retail sector and in the tourism sector, the majority of businesses depend on festive season sales to tide them over during slower periods in the first quarter of the year. For these reasons, there is a need for certainty over potential power outages so businesses can plan around them.
“Eskom has been innovative in its communication and should build on this foundation. Municipalities sometimes fail to relay regular Eskom notices, so electronic channels of communication like SMS, e-mail or downloadable apps should be used to ensure that the end users are properly notified of the situation.
“The success of response to the current crisis depends on transparency in the relationship between Eskom and its users.”
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