Electricity price relief on the horizon for South Africa

Key topics:Kgosientsho Ramokgopa plans consultation Apr–Jun 2026, table policy Jul–Sep 2026Push for inflation-linked electricity pricing, ending double-digit hikesEskom revenue per kWh up ~1500%, raising tariff and bailout debate.Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox every morning on weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa's bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..By Myles Illidge.South Africa’s electricity and energy minister, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, plans to table the reviewed Electricity Pricing Policy before Parliament between July and September 2026.Ramokgopa announced the planned timing in response to Parliamentary questions from Democratic Alliance MP Edwin Baptie.The draft version of the policy is scheduled for public consultation and stakeholder engagement during the first quarter of the 2026/27 financial year, which runs from April to June 2026.“This process is critical to ensure that the policy is robust, inclusive, and responsive to the needs of all stakeholders, including indigent and vulnerable households,” Ramokgopa said..Read more:.Eskom’s revenue surge sparks debate over soaring electricity costs.Following the consultation period and the evaluation of submissions, the minister said his department would move to table the reviewed policy before Parliament.“The Department anticipates tabling the reviewed Electricity Pricing Policy before Parliament in the second quarter of the 2026/27 financial year,” he said.“At this stage, a specific date cannot be confirmed, as the timing will depend on the completion of the consultation process and the necessary approvals.”Ramokgopa said his department remained committed to expediting the process while ensuring the policy was credible, well-considered, and aligned with broader electricity reforms.The minister, during a speech before the National Council of Provinces in October 2025, committed to finalising his review of the Electricity Pricing Policy in March 2026.He effectively read Eskom the riot act on its electricity price adjustments and emphasised that the era of double-digit price hikes was over.“We are getting to a stage where we are able to find a price path,” Ramokgopa said, responding to a question from the DA’s Dennis Ryder.The minister said finding a new price path would increase confidence levels surrounding the government’s projections for future electricity price adjustments.“We really want to get into the domain of price increases that are benchmarked relative to inflation,” he stated. “I’ve made the point publicly.”Eskom making 15 times more money from the same amount of electricity.A MyBroadband analysis of Eskom’s revenue and electricity sales revealed the utility made roughly 1,500% more money in 2025/26 from selling the same amount of electricity as it did in 2000.The utility recently presented its estimated electricity sales figures for the year ended 31 March 2026 in Parliament. It anticipated sales of around 179 terawatt-hours (TWh).The last time Eskom sold less than 180TWh of electricity in a year was in 2000. In that year, it recorded electricity revenue of R23.57 billion.That worked out to a revenue of roughly 13 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), which is the official unit of measure for an electricity “unit.”For its 2026 financial year, Eskom estimated it would generate R370 billion in electricity sales revenue, working out to 207 cents per kWh..Read more:.Wietze Post: Your electricity costs from 2026 to 2030 – the great divide.Therefore, Eskom’s revenue per kWh increased by about 15.92 times or 1,492%. Over the same period, inflation was about 285%.Had its revenue per kWh risen in line with inflation, the power utility would have made only 50 cents per kWh in the 2026 financial year, or less than 25% of its estimated revenue.The power utility’s electricity tariff adjustments have amounted to more than 900% over the past two decades.Despite this, it still required nearly R500 billion in taxpayer bailouts to stay afloat. MyBroadband asked Eskom how it justified these increases during its winter system status outlook briefing in April 2026.Eskom CEO Dan Marokane said the utility had repeatedly indicated that some of its costs were not tied to inflation.“About 50% of our costs are not moving at the rate of inflation, and those who are suppliers in the private sector — especially in primary energy — will be able to attest to that,” he said..This article was first published by MyBroadband and is republished with permission.

Electricity price relief on the horizon for South Africa

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