South Africa: Eskom wants 53% more
Thématique :
sud afrique
By Boyd Webb and Sapa, The Star on March 19, 2008
Eskom is still supplying electricity to South Africa's neighbours, but they are also being subjected to power shedding, Public Enterprises Minister Alec Erwin said on Tuesday, as the country braced itself for a possible 53 percent hike in the price of electricity.
The National Energy Regulator (Nersa) confirmed that Eskom had officially applied for a 53 percent tariff hike. "Eskom has applied for a revision of the price for 2008/9 from 14,2 percent to 53 percent increase... or a 60 percent nominal increase," Nersa said.
The energy utility has already implemented a 14,2 percent increase which Nersa granted it last year, but Eskom has argued that the increase was not enough to help fund its R300-billion expansion programme.
If the new request is granted, the increase will replace the 14,2 percent increase.
The hike - whether 14,2 or 53 percent - comes in the wake of a 2c per kilowatt hour electricity levy announced last month by Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, and amid a new round of nationwide power cuts.
It said Eskom wanted the revision because of what the utility said were its higher primary energy costs, and "accelerated demand side management" costs.
Nersa, that last year turned down Eskom's original request for an 18 percent increase, looks set to pay the power utilities' hefty demand some serious attention. "In the light of the current electricity supply shortage and load shedding in the country, the energy regulator will give urgent attention to Eskom's application and make its decision after due process," the regulator said.
During the National Assembly debate on the Appropriation Bill on Tuesday opposition parties called for greater clarity of Eskom's funding structures.
The ACDP said that while it was welcoming the fact that government would address the power crisis by providing R60-billion (over five years) to assist Eskom, it needed greater clarity as to the terms and details of this funding arrangement.
The Freedom Front Plus (FF+) decried the lack of political leadership in the crisis arguing that it was largely to blame for the economic insecurity and pessimism that abounded.
However, responding to parliamentary questions from the FF+, Erwin said South Africans were not the only ones feeling the brunt of the power crises. He told FF+ MP Willie Spies that Eskom was only supplying 90 on Tuesday of the 950 mega watts of the electricity it was contractually obliged to provide a Mozambican aluminium smelter.
He said the smelter had offered to absorb further hours of "disruption" in order to assist during the energy crisis in January. "In addition, once the commitment was made by South African customers to reduce their off take by 10 percent, this reduction was made by the smelter. It is therefore currently operating at 90 percent of normal levels," he said.
Erwin assured Spies that all utilities that bought electricity from Eskom - Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Mozambique and Swaziland - were subject to the "same treatment" as South Africans were.
"Where domestic customers have been subjected to load shedding the respective utilities have been subjected to similar restriction," he said.
Eskom is still supplying electricity to South Africa's neighbours, but they are also being subjected to power shedding, Public Enterprises Minister Alec Erwin said on Tuesday, as the country braced itself for a possible 53 percent hike in the price of electricity.
The National Energy Regulator (Nersa) confirmed that Eskom had officially applied for a 53 percent tariff hike. "Eskom has applied for a revision of the price for 2008/9 from 14,2 percent to 53 percent increase... or a 60 percent nominal increase," Nersa said.
The energy utility has already implemented a 14,2 percent increase which Nersa granted it last year, but Eskom has argued that the increase was not enough to help fund its R300-billion expansion programme.
If the new request is granted, the increase will replace the 14,2 percent increase.
The hike - whether 14,2 or 53 percent - comes in the wake of a 2c per kilowatt hour electricity levy announced last month by Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, and amid a new round of nationwide power cuts.
It said Eskom wanted the revision because of what the utility said were its higher primary energy costs, and "accelerated demand side management" costs.
Nersa, that last year turned down Eskom's original request for an 18 percent increase, looks set to pay the power utilities' hefty demand some serious attention. "In the light of the current electricity supply shortage and load shedding in the country, the energy regulator will give urgent attention to Eskom's application and make its decision after due process," the regulator said.
During the National Assembly debate on the Appropriation Bill on Tuesday opposition parties called for greater clarity of Eskom's funding structures.
The ACDP said that while it was welcoming the fact that government would address the power crisis by providing R60-billion (over five years) to assist Eskom, it needed greater clarity as to the terms and details of this funding arrangement.
The Freedom Front Plus (FF+) decried the lack of political leadership in the crisis arguing that it was largely to blame for the economic insecurity and pessimism that abounded.
However, responding to parliamentary questions from the FF+, Erwin said South Africans were not the only ones feeling the brunt of the power crises. He told FF+ MP Willie Spies that Eskom was only supplying 90 on Tuesday of the 950 mega watts of the electricity it was contractually obliged to provide a Mozambican aluminium smelter.
He said the smelter had offered to absorb further hours of "disruption" in order to assist during the energy crisis in January. "In addition, once the commitment was made by South African customers to reduce their off take by 10 percent, this reduction was made by the smelter. It is therefore currently operating at 90 percent of normal levels," he said.
Erwin assured Spies that all utilities that bought electricity from Eskom - Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Mozambique and Swaziland - were subject to the "same treatment" as South Africans were.
"Where domestic customers have been subjected to load shedding the respective utilities have been subjected to similar restriction," he said.
