Eskom to up tariffs to recoup diesel costs

Johannesburg – The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) said on Wednesday it has given Eskom the go-ahead to charge consumers more for power to recoup the extra diesel costs it has incurred while running gas turbines to cope with electricity demand.

Eskom is currently battling to meet its daily demand of about 30 000MW and is relying heavily on diesel-powered turbines to keep the lights on.

The supplier's generating capacity has been compromised due to technical faults at its aging power plants, as well as a shortfall in its installed power generation capacity, leading to regular power cuts since March 2014.

Thembani Bakula, a senior official at Nersa told Reuters consumers will pay more for electricity in the 2016/2017 financial year, which starts in April, but the authority was still calculating the exact amount of the increase.

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In November, Nersa granted Eskom a 12.69% tariff increase which comes into effect in April but the utility has said the amount was insufficient to cover its R225bn funding shortfall.

"In this financial year, we have spent more on diesel than we anticipated and we have been able to show and convince the regulator as to how we exceeded our budget," Eskom spokesperson Khulu Phasiwe said on Wednesday.

The cash-strapped utility is also struggling to generate enough cash to service the debt it needs to pay for the completion of new power stations.

Eskom said earlier on Wednesday it would widen rolling blackouts due to a shortage in generation.

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