Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning
(a) How many municipalities are currently at default with paying their Eskom accounts and (b) what alternative sources of energy supply are available to (i) residential and (ii) commercial business consumers in the province?
As reflected in the MFMA Section 41 report (Eskom’s report submitted to National Treasury), as at 30 April 2015, the total debt, including current billings, ostensibly owed by municipalities in Province for bulk electricity sales amounted to R759.029 million. Of this amount, R727.959 million relates to current billings. The remainder and it’s ageing for the period of (a) 30, (b) 60, (c) 90 and (d) more than 90 days are as follows:
- R12.218 million is outstanding for 30 days;
- R8.646 million is outstanding for 60 days;
- R6.093 million is outstanding for 90 days;
- R4.113 million is outstanding for the period longer than 90 days.
Current accounts are settled timeously by all municipalities in the Province. Payment arrangements are in place for municipalities with arrears, which is honoured by Kannaland and Cederberg Municipalities.
- (b) i. Residential consumers have access to gas, solar water heater geysers, heat pump water heater geyser, photovoltaic (PV), generators, paraffin, candles, wood/or coal burning cook stoves.
Commercial, business, industrial consumers as well as municipalities have in addition to the above also access to Waste to Energy (where either solid waste is incinerated to produce electrical power, or methane gas is harvested from landfill sites or waste water is used to produce Bio-gas). Drakenstein Municipality, for example, is currently planning for a 15 MW plant.
