Eskom has agreed not to implement power cuts to four Eastern Cape municipalities on Tuesday, after a lengthy meeting resulted in a truce.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey have come to an agreement with the municipalities, and as a result we are not going to be affected by the power interruption which was scheduled for 17:00,\u201d Eskom spokesperson Khulu Phasiwe told EWN on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
As required by the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, Eskom had given Aliwal North, Steynsburg, Jansenville, Bedford and Adelaide municipalities sufficient notice to settle their debt, which totals R173m.<\/p>\n
Eskom was planning on interrupting power supply three times a day, from 06:00 to 09:00, 12:00 to 14:00 and 17:00 to 21:00, starting on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Phasiwe told Fin24 earlier that the power interruptions were Eskom\u2019s last resort to recover the money. He said Eskom had taken necessary steps to recover the debt before the interruptions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wrote them letters. We also involved other stakeholders such as provincial co-operative governance and Traditional Affairs leadership and the South African Local Government Association,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Rising municipal debt is a long-standing problem for Eskom. National Treasury earlier this year urged municipalities to honour their financial obligations to the power supplier.<\/p>\n
Residents and businesses in the affected municipalities – some of whom have been paying their electricity bills diligently – will bear the brunt of the move.<\/p>\n
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