By Doreen Mokgolo
Minister of Electricity, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, is worried about the rising cost of electricity, which is making life harder for people on the ground.
At the start of the month, municipalities increased electricity prices in a move approved by Nersa which left communities struggling to pay these higher costs.
On Monday, Ramokgopa spoke to the media in Tshwane about plans to fix the ongoing load shedding problem.
“We have met with the South African Local Government Association and will work with municipalities to find a solution. We also plan to meet with Nersa to discuss and solve the pricing issues,” Ramokgopa said.
Ramokgopa explained that while they are trying to stop load shedding, new problems such as the high cost, availability, and access to electricity are cropping up.
These problems are stopping the country from reaching its goal of giving everyone access to electricity, as promised in the National Development Plan.
“We are not meeting this goal because of the many informal settlements that are not included in development plans. For now, this will continue to be a moving target,” he said.
Although there has been no load shedding for 124 days, Ramokgopa warned that the problem is not fully solved.
He mentioned the issue of load reduction, which is used to protect infrastructure when there is too much demand for electricity.
This issue is caused by illegal connections, more informal settlements, and poor maintenance of infrastructure.
Pictured above: Minister of Electricity Kgosientsho Ramokgopa.
Source: Doreen Mokgolo
