Municipalities owe Eskom R1.4 billion for electricity
Municipalities across South Africa owe Eskom R1.4 billion for electricity, according to a reply to a DA parliamentary question.
Of the total debt owed to Eskom:
- R470 806 751 is owed for 60 days;
- R362 709 051 is owed for 90 days; and
- R570 031 399 is for debt older than 90 days.
The highest debt has been accumulated by municipalities in Mpumalanga (R485 million), the Free Sate (R466 million) and Gauteng (R162 million).
Earlier this year Eskom issued disconnection notices to municipalities in the Free State, North West, Mpumalanga and Gauteng due to non-payment. To prevent this from happening again, it is imperative that all money owed to Eskom is recovered.
The DA will write to the Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan, requesting that National Treasury meditate between Eskom and the offending municipalities in terms of section 44 of the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA). According to this section, Treasury can be requested to mediate financial disputes between organs of state.
During the mediations, Treasury should aim to recover all money owed to Eskom and take appropriate action to prevent municipal debt from accumulating in the future.
Last week Eskom announced its first energy supply emergency since 2008 and published a load-shedding schedule, as a ‘precautionary measure' - an indication of the severity of South Africa's electricity crisis.
With 40% of Eskom's electricity sold to municipalities, these local government structures must take all steps to prevent a further exacerbation of South Africa's power crisis. It is ultimately municipalities' responsibility to ensure the timeous payments by households and businesses in their jurisdictions.
The prevention of load-shedding and rolling blackouts will require that all relevant role-players play their parts. Eskom must get its house in order. Municipalities should recover all debts owed and citizens must use electricity responsibly. Together, we can save South Africa from an electricity crisis.
Statement issued by Jacques Smalle MP, DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Energy, November 25 2013
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