Ms Dipuo Peters, Minister of Energy, today, Thursday, 27 August, announced that the she will vigorously engage the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) with the ultimate aim of ensuring that it advances the rollout of the electricity basic service support tariff (Electricity Basic Support Services Tariff (EBSST) or Free Basic Electricity) at municipalities right across the country. This will be done to protect the poor against high tariffs that clearly will now be the dominant feature of the country electricity industry going forward.
Over and above EBSST, NERSA would be expected to ensure that tariff increases at municipalities are profiled in such a manner that the poor are insulated from the expected increases, in comparison to those affecting industrial users.
Minister Peters was reacting to Eskom's release of its financial results for the year to March. She said, "as a custodian of the country's energy security, I have an executive obligation to ensure that we have a functional and sustainable supply industry. Eskom is central to this project."
"That is why we have to ensure that Eskom is a strong and viable entity that has the capacity to deliver on its mandate. We will continue, however, as a policy department, to make appropriate policy interventions to cushion the poor against what we anticipate will be higher tariffs that are now coming into effect as Eskom proceeds with the efforts to finance its much needed capital projects," Minister Peters added.
Finally, the Minister said, "We will continue, despite the vagaries of the global economic turmoil, to deliver free basic electricity to our people. Accordingly, we will persist with our call to the municipalities to desist from increasing the electricity tariffs in a manner that is not commensurate with the objectives of the Cabinet approved electricity pricing policy in relation to poor communities."
Enquiries:
Bheki Khumalo
Cell: 082 773 2388
Zodwa Batyashe
Cell: 083 255 8849
Issued by: Department of Energy
27 August 2009
