Eskom set to continue working with Soweto residents to find lasting solutions to electricity problems

15 May 2015

Eskom would like to apologise to the residents of Soweto for the inconvenience caused by the prolonged power outage last Friday.

Acting CEO Brian Molefe said: “First and foremost, on behalf of Eskom, I would like to personally apologise for the inconvenience that most customers have had to endure due to load shedding and other technical failures. Last Friday’s prolonged power outage in Soweto was caused by a combination of two unrelated factors, namely load shedding and some of our power distribution networks battling to cope with the huge electricity demand. We value our customers and commit to improve our turnaround times so that we can better serve all our 5-million customers around the country.”

Furthermore, Eskom welcomes the peaceful manner in which the South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) and the ANC Joburg Region articulated their concerns about the recent prolonged power outages in Soweto. The demands clearly indicate that SANCO and its alliance partners are willing to work with us to find a lasting solution to the electricity issues that face the country.

“We welcome the fact that SANCO and its alliance partners would like us to roll out education and awareness campaigns about the benefits of prepaid meters, and that they would like us to provide prepaid meters to tenants who live in rented backrooms so that each tenant can pay according to their consumption,” said Molefe.

The current infrastructure upgrade in Soweto is aimed at achieving the following objectives:

- Assist in efficient utilisation of electricity

- Minimise the need for load shedding

- Reduce unnecessary unplanned power failures/outages (stable electricity supply)

- Assist customers to manage their electricity cost

- Reduce illegal connections and electricity theft (improved public safety)

Stop the debt of R4 billion from increasing any further.

Statement issued by Eskom, May 15 2015