New Eskom tariff hike in the pipeline, says regulator

ESKOM was expected to hike electricity tariffs by more than 8 percent next year, the National Energy Regulator said yesterday.

“There will be a tariff adjustment for 2015/2016. So there will be an additional increase to the 8 percent that was previously granted,” said Nersa spokesman Charles Hlebela.

The exact percentage hike would be determined by April, he said.

Earlier, Nersa announced that it had approved the regulatory clearing account (RCA) for Eskom.

The account is a regulatory mechanism that allows Eskom to adjust for over- or under-recovery of revenue, as the initial price determinations are based on projections and assumptions.

The regulator said it had approved a balance of R7.8 billion for Eskom. The state-owned utility had initially applied for a cumulative RCA balance of R18.3bn.

“The approved RCA balance is for the second multi-year price determination control period, 2010 to 2013, and will be implemented in the 2015/16 financial year.”

The regulator said it would draft an implementation plan that would determine exactly how Eskom would recover the money.

Eskom has been asking for an equity injection of at least R50bn to solve its cash-flow problems.

Yesterday the power utility painted a gloomy picture of its books, telling MPs it faced a R225bn revenue shortfall, partly as a result of being granted lower-than-expected tariff increases by Nersa. – Sapa