Elections: What the ANC, DA, EFF and MK promise on electricity as load reduction lingers
According to Eskom, its energy availability factor for the financial year to date reached 68.2%, the best level in six years.
As the country approaches the 4 November Local Government elections, the main parties – ANC, DA, EFF, and MK – have unveiled their stances on electricity, amid ongoing load reduction affecting parts of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.
Eskom reported its best energy availability in six years, with an energy availability factor of 68.2%, marking a 12.8% improvement from three years ago. This surge has added 6,536MW of capacity to the grid, with diesel spending dropping by R4.87 billion compared to the same period last year.
Despite these gains, load reduction still impacts certain regions. Eskom's data indicates that while 89% of targeted customers have returned to normal supply, about 2.7% of the customer base, amounting to 193,556 individuals, still face power cuts. The utility aims to eliminate loadshedding by March 2027 and seeks community assistance to achieve this goal.
The ANC highlighted its success in reducing load shedding to over 400 consecutive days, emphasizing plans to upgrade municipal networks, introduce smart meters, cut outages, and speed up fault response. It also pledged to raise monthly Free Basic Electricity for qualifying households and considers a feed-in tariff for rooftop solar users. Additionally, the ANC seeks to strengthen coordination with Esko, safeguard energy infrastructure, and reduce both technical and non-technical losses.
DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis framed electricity as part of the party's promise to empower municipalities. The DA manifesto asserts that municipalities will have the authority to buy and sell their own power, reinvest revenue into infrastructure, and support households and businesses that can feed electricity back into the system.
The EFF presents a markedly different perspective, viewing electricity as a public good rather than a profit-driven function. It plans to eliminate extra charges on prepaid meters, install them free of charge, and restore full municipal control over billing. The party also promises to employ its own engineers and electricians and aims for an emergency response time of no more than one hour for faults.
Moreover, the EFF emphasizes the need for solar panels, solar geysers, and battery storage for households still awaiting electricity, alongside community-based renewable projects in collaboration with Eskom.
Lastly, the MK party, while not detailing municipal networks extensively, proposes to ensure key state-owned enterprises provide affordable electricity, water, and transport for citizens and industry. It intends to review and repeal certain policies, renew Eskom's coal fleet, and expedite its nuclear new build programme.
Written by urgent.news from The Citizen's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
