Large Power Users (LPUs) In Emfuleni to pay their electricity bills directly to Eskom

Large Power Users (LPUs) in Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) will now be required to pay their electricity consumption directly to Eskom, effective immediately.

Eskom made this announcement in a statement on Twitter. This directive follows a court order issued by the Pretoria High Court in July 2023, mandating the municipality to appoint Eskom as its service delivery agent for all electricity-related functions and services.

As per the court order, Eskom and the municipality have been tasked with finalizing the terms of this agreement within six months, under the oversight of the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA).

The court’s ruling also specifies that during this interim period, industrial customers must make direct payments to Eskom, pending the full implementation of the agreement. It is now mandatory for all LPUs to remit their total electricity charges, including the VAT component, directly to Eskom.

This legal decision stems from the municipality’s failure to comply with a prior court order issued in November 2018, which allowed eight ELM industrial customers to pay Eskom directly.

Subsequently, Eskom, along with other applicants, sought court intervention once again, resulting in a judgment delivered in July 2023.