Eskom has us snookered, says landlord

Michelle Nel has it all worked out: if Eskom continues pushing up its tariffs, she will go off the grid.

She will add a couple more solar panels to the room of her home in Kensington, Joburg, and use more gas.

She already has solar panels that power her geyser.

Nel, a landlord, pays about R2 800 a month on electricity on three houses. One of those, however, is on a prepaid electrical billing system, which means she is charged at a rate of just under R200.

Her tenants buy their own electricity.

A two-bedroom house she lets out in Kensington costs her about R1 600.

Power in Nel's home - with two children, a domestic worker and a tenant - comes to about a R1 000 a month.

With the new Eskom tariff, she fears her bill will go up astronomically.

Eskom's new tariff comes into effect for its direct customers on April 1.

As a City Power customer, Nel will have to wait till July to see what the Joburg power utility's increase will be before she will know how much more she will be paying.

The City Power increase is expected to be in the region of 15 percent.

"It is becoming a real nightmare, we've really been snookered by Eskom," she said. "We could end up being charged more than what we earn."

The Star

Posted at 08:35AM Feb 25, 2010 by Editor in Residential  |