Eskom warns of Johannesburg power cut over debt 

South Africa’s state-owned electricity company, Eskom, has warned that it may cut power supply to Johannesburg over unpaid debts, a spokesperson said on Tuesday.

Eskom said the City of Johannesburg and its power utility, City Power, owe it 5.26 billion rand ($315.26 million) in arrears. A further 1.58 billion rand is due on June 5.

Eskom has issued a notice of its intention to “reduce, interrupt and/or terminate the supply of electricity to certain bulk supply points” against the city and its utility.

The utility said it has worked with the Johannesburg metropolitan municipality for more than two years over the unpaid debts, but the city has repeatedly defaulted.

Johannesburg’s financial troubles have been in the spotlight recently after the National Treasury raised serious concerns over the state of its finances.

Eskom has also had longstanding financial troubles, but it has started to emerge from them thanks to government bailouts and a turnaround in the performance of its coal-fired power stations. It reported its first full-year profit in eight years last year.

The City of Johannesburg did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

SOURCE: Reuters