Premier Lesufi’s government fails to assist municipalities to reduce stages of load-shedding
11 July 2023
Gauteng municipalities are not financially stable to build a new electricity grid to feed in additional electricity from Independent Power Producers (IPPs). Gauteng Provincial Government has no concrete plans in place to assist municipalities in maintaining their electrical grids. This is according to the Gauteng MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), Mzi Khumalo.
The MEC was responding to our questions tabled in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature regarding the procurement of electricity from Independent Power Producers to lessen the impact load-shedding has on our residents.
MEC Khumalo says that the Gauteng Provincial Government is not mandated to procure electricity from IPPs. However, through the Energy Security Strategy, the GPG has been liaising with municipalities that will be procuring electricity directly from IPPs.
Furthermore, there are no plans to build a new grid to feed-in the additional electricity. Municipalities will have to look into upgrading their grids or building new ones independently, provided they get the necessary permission from the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA).