Loadshedding economic crisis: Cape Town to procure power from independent power producers

2 February 2022  

In the next two weeks, the City of Cape Town will publish documents detailing our upcoming procurement of power from independent power producers (IPPs). This will include the announcement of tenders for the purchase of electricity from IPPs and timelines for bringing IPP-generated electricity onto the City’s supply network.

It has become clear to the City of Cape Town that if we wish to halt the damage caused by Eskom’s monopoly over electricity generation, we have to take matters into our own hands. The only way for us to provide reliable and affordable electricity to our residents is to source it from elsewhere. 

The urgency of the matter cannot be overstated in light of Eskom’s decision to implement stage-two load-shedding from 11h00 today until 05h00 next Monday morning.

While the City is proud to be able to protect its electricity customers from one stage of loadshedding, from 11h00 to 22h00 today, while further protection measures will communicated. It should never be forgotten that any loadshedding comes at a significant cost for South Africans.

Load-shedding means real businesses failing. Load-shedding means jobs being lost. Load-shedding makes the possibility of meaningful economic recovery ever more remote.

Despite the economic devastation caused by load-shedding and the unreliability of its power supply, Eskom is pressing ahead with an application to Nersa to hike the price of electricity by 20,5% from 1 April 2022. I have made it clear to Eskom and to Nersa that this planned increase is unfair, unjust, and unaffordable. Over 30 000 Capetonians signed a petition over the course of one weekend, asking Nersa to disallow the increase.

Bringing IPPs onto the grid, through the tendering process, is a crucial step in ending load-shedding over time. The economic effects of a reliable power supply in Cape Town will mean more profitable businesses and more job opportunities. Every Capetonian will benefit. 

We hope that other spheres of government will respect our constitutional mandate to deliver electricity to our residents, and not stand in our way of making Cape Town the first load-shedding-free municipality in South Africa.

Issued by Media Office, City of Cape Town, 2 February 2022