State owned power utility Eskom is calling on all customers – whether business, government or the general public – to pay their electricity bills.
This after the power utility won a legal battle against the Letsemeng Local Municipality in which the local government institution was instructed to pay its R41 million electricity bill.
“The SCA [Supreme Court of Appeal] made it clear that the fact that a municipality raises a dispute…as a defence or claims that it is unable to pay does not absolve it of its legal obligations to pay Eskom for the bulk electricity it receives. The SCA has authoritatively made it clear that there is no legal basis for delinquent municipalities’ failure to pay Eskom.
“Eskom welcomes the decision and assures the public that it will continue with its efforts to recover the debt owed by delinquent municipalities,” the energy supplier said.
Eskom said the decision by the SCA is “ground breaking” in light of the R44 billion in total owed to the cash strapped power utility.
“Eskom’s attempts to recover the debt have often been frustrated by conflicting high court judgments - some of which have been used by delinquent municipalities as justification for their failure to meet their obligations to Eskom.
“In this ground breaking judgement on the issue of municipal debt, the SCA laid down clear legal principles which uphold Eskom’s right to receive payment for the bulk electricity it suppliers to municipalities. The appeal was instituted by Eskom against the decision of the Free State High Court which had earlier dismissed Eskom’s application which sought to compel the municipality to pay for the bulk electricity received from Eskom,” the power utility said.
Meanwhile, Eskom has called for patience after customers in at least three districts in the Eastern Cape continue to live with electricity blackouts.
Parts of the Amathole, OR Tambo and Chris Hani districts in the province have been battling power outages as a result of inclement weather in that part of the country.
“Eskom has experienced network setbacks as more storms made landfall in some parts of the Eastern Cape last weekend leaving numerous customers without electricity supply. Eskom technicians are working hard to ensure complete restoration of power supply,” the power utility said.
The area has been beset with power failures for the past three months with heavy rainfall, strong winds and thunderstorms battering the province.
The energy supplier explained the persistent rains are a risk to technicians working on the ground and Eskom infrastructure.
“Inclement weather puts the Eskom network at risk and can affect the electricity supply for customers, potentially leaving customers with prolonged periods without electricity. Eskom urges customers to be patient and follow the channels made available to log faults…and to treat all electrical appliances as live at this time,” Eskom said. – SAnews.gov.za
