Bigger hikes to follow Nersa’s R54bn behind-closed-doors settlement with Eskom

Eskom’s electricity tariffs are poised to rise by 8.76% on April 1 next year instead of the 5.36% approved previously, and by 8.83% instead of 6.19% in 2027/28 after the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) reached a settlement agreement with the State-owned entity in relation to errors made by the regulator in its sixth multiyear price determination (MYPD6) revenue decision. Eskom legally challenged the MYDP6 decision in July, arguing that the erroneous way in which Nersa calculated the regulatory asset base value for the generation business, and which affected the depreciation amount approved, had left it with a revenue shortfall of a R107-billion.