The Minister of Energy and Electricity, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, has made it clear that his department is not involved in the City of Johannesburg’s draft budget proposal for 2025/26, which recommends raising the prepaid electricity service charge from R200 to R270 monthly. He emphasized that this decision falls outside his jurisdiction.

“Municipalities have original powers as specified in the Constitution—municipalities are authorized to levy tariffs for reticulation and redistribution,” Ramokgopa remarked during a media briefing on Eskom’s winter outlook on Monday.

Read:
Tariff shock as City Power rolls out R200 prepaid charge [Jul 2024]
Heavy burden on Joburg’s poor with steep new electricity price hikes [Jun 2024]
Joburg’s R6.6bn water and electricity loss scandal [Jun 2024]

“This issue does not fall within the ministry’s responsibilities or those of Eskom,” Ramokgopa reiterated.

“The City of Johannesburg and its legislative body will review all public submissions during the budget approval process.”

Launched in July 2024, the surcharge has faced significant pushback amid growing concerns about electricity prices.

The surcharge is a fixed fee introduced to ensure revenue for ongoing service delivery, infrastructure maintenance, and improvements in electricity supply for residents.

The advocacy organization Outa has been opposed to this surcharge, arguing that it will pose severe financial burdens on vulnerable communities and should be removed.

In the 2019/20 fiscal year, the city council withdrew the proposed R200 surcharge for prepaid electricity users after receiving backlash from civil society and advocacy groups.

Moneyweb reported that the city acknowledged the financial difficulties faced by consumers, attributing its decision to rising living costs, reduced disposable income, and a sluggish economy.

Winter outlook

Eskom CEO Dan Marokane also addressed the media on Monday, indicating that the power utility does not expect any load shedding during the winter season, provided that unplanned losses stay below 13 gigawatts.

If unplanned losses rise to 15 gigawatts, there could be a maximum of 21 days of up to Stage 2 load shedding.

He stated that nine months without load shedding was “not mere luck” but a result of improved operation and availability of their fleet.

Read: Eskom sees decreased load shedding risk as demand rises [May 2025]

Before ending its streak, Eskom achieved 300 consecutive days without load shedding, the longest stretch since 2018.

“We are now aware that 96% of the time, we can meet demand, despite some disruptions, particularly from January to April this year,” said Marokane.

Nonetheless, the utility has been performing better than in past years as it continues to bring substantial units online.

“We will achieve full capacity as we move through the winter months.”

Hindrances

However, Eskom’s recent progress faces considerable challenges, especially poor revenue collection due to soaring municipal debt, which now stands at R100 billion, and widespread illegal connections.

Read: Eskom prepared to start borrowing again

In the 2022/23 fiscal year, Eskom reported non-technical losses of approximately R5 billion due to illegal connections, meter tampering, and other electricity-related criminal activities within its supply area, according to a statement from the utility.

CoJ meter verification

Meanwhile, the City of Johannesburg announced on Monday that it is enhancing its meter verification initiatives in specific residential areas to ensure accurate readings. This effort is part of a broader billing optimization project aimed at improving municipal bills for all customers this month.

The city stated that the project aims to provide customers with accurate, actual meter readings for their water and electricity services while also helping to enhance revenue collection going forward.

The residential neighborhoods targeted for visits include Dunkeld, Naturena, Melville, Parktown, Olivedale, and Parkhurst.

“This project will significantly assist in addressing customer complaints regarding estimated readings,” said Kgamanyane Maphologela, CoJ group finance’s director for communications and stakeholder engagement.

“Full cooperation from our customers is essential to ensure that the project accurately reflects true consumption.”

Read/listen:
Sputla’s flagship municipal power project falters [April 2025]
CoJ faces renewed threat of power cuts as Eskom debt dispute resurfaces [April 2025]

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