MEYERTON. – The application by state owned power utility Eskom to the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) has many calling for a withdrawal due to the current economic condition. Midvaal Local Municipality Executive Mayor Peter Teixeira has written to the (NERSA) requesting Eskom to withdraw its application to increase electricity tariffs by 20.5%. Teixeira stated that a tariff increase would prove to be even more devastating for the residents of Midvaal. In the letter, Teixera stated that despite Midvaal being a well-run municipality, it is not immune to the fiscal shock of an average tariff increase by Eskom. “Our own efforts to contain costs to the benefit of our residents have proven fruitful but are limited to impact. Our pre-pandemic analysis indicates that our local industries were already struggling due to load shedding. The Covid-19 pandemic has only made the situation worse.” Teixeira said that the province’s weak economic growth had placed pressure on consumer’s ability to pay for services and added that Eskom needed to play its part in the rebuilding of the country and its economy. “We further demand that the Eskom office in Vereeniging is reopened. Residents living in our Eskom designated areas are sent from pillar to post when they need to either log or escalate complaints. “While this specific Customer Service Centre was closed during the Level 5 lockdown period. It has not been fully operational even after regulations have been eased.”
