South Africa: City Power and Eskom Terrorising Your Neighbourhood? Introducing Electricity Extortion Watch

An alarming phenomenon has taken hold in Johannesburg over the past several months: Dozens of our readers have reported being extorted and intimidated by City Power and Eskom… Read more »

South Africa: Makhanda High Court Halts Drastic Eskom Power Cuts for Troubled Karoo Towns

The Makhanda high court has temporarily halted Eskom's threatened escalating power cuts that could have led to Karoo communities being denied electricity for 14 hours a day, seven… Read more »

South Africa: Curtailment, Conflicts of Interest and Cash Flow - Eskom's Tightening Grip On Renewable Energy Producers

Eskom is, in effect, setting and refereeing the rules of a game in which it is also the largest player, with a direct commercial interest in the result. Read more »

South Africa: Everything You Need to Know About Offshore Wind Energy in SA

Offshore wind has become an attractive energy source across the globe, but in South Africa there are challenges. Read more »

South Africa: Johannesburg and Eskom Broker Agreement to Keep the Lights On

Johannesburg's executive mayor, Dada Morero, and the minister of electricity and energy, Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, announced a partnership between City Power and Eskom that will… Read more »

South Africa: Company Rescued By Council Transformer Lease Now Owes Metro R45m, Including R11.9m Electricity Arrears

Nelson Mandela Bay metro finds itself in a Catch-22 situation as the company it irregularly leased a municipal asset to, raising public backlash, has now failed to pay its… Read more »

South Africa: Energy and Water Seta Blew R58m in Public Funds On Building That Was Never Used

More than R58-million in public funds has been lost on an unused building bought by the Energy and Water Sector Education and Training Authority in 2014. Despite years of spending,… Read more »

South Africa: Why SA's Energy Security Is a Feminist and Economic Emergency

Every year South Africa remains dependent on fossil fuels is another year in which distant conflicts, global price shocks and geopolitical instability dictate the cost of bread,… Read more »

South Africa: Is the Just Transition Slipping Away? Power Imbalances Shaping SA's Energy Future

Five years since the establishment of the Presidential Climate Commission, South Africa's Just Transition seems to be faltering. A new groundWork report warns that while climate… Read more »

South Africa: 'Stealing Cables Is Easy' - City Power Records 652 Incidents in Seven Months

From July 2025 to January 2026, City Power suffered 652 incidents of cable theft and vandalism, which outpaced its ability to repair the infrastructure, leaving communities without… Read more »

South Africa: SA's Biggest Data Centre 'Monster' Set to Consume 25 Percent of Durban's Electricity

Durban is pressing ahead with plans to build a massive 400MW artificial intelligence data centre in partnership with a South Korean power consortium. It would be South Africa's… Read more »

Africa: Does Adding 'Please' and 'Thank You' to Your ChatGPT Prompts Really Waste Energy?

Cut the words "please" and "thank you" from your next ChatGPT query and, if you believe some of the talk online, you might think you are helping save the planet. Read more »

South Africa: Walking Back the Carbon Tax Is a Step Backwards for South Africa's Climate Gains

Abolishing or suspending the tax would surrender an established policy lever for energy reform, fiscal stability, competitiveness and decarbonisation. Read more »

South Africa: What Is Eskom's End State, Ask Energy Traders

Leading energy traders want to know what Eskom's end state is as they push for clarity on the phasing out of South Africa's energy monopoly. Read more »

South Africa: Flawed Electricity Pricing Policy and Tariff Regulation Are Deepening SA's Municipal Electricity Crisis

South Africa's municipal electricity pricing is broken. Current policies are draining city budgets, overcharging residents and letting infrastructure crumble. Read more »

South Africa: Nelson Mandela Bay's Collapsing Pylons - - Will This One Be Next?

A corroded 132kV transmission tower in Nelson Mandela Bay is at risk of collapse, raising urgent concerns about ageing infrastructure and recent failures that left residents in… Read more »

South Africa: Civil Groups Slam Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Over Repeated Power Outages

Repeated electricity outages in Nelson Mandela Bay, caused by long-neglected infrastructure, are crippling businesses, disrupting water supply and threatening jobs, civil society… Read more »

South Africa: Could NERSA Remove Nelson Mandela Bay's Electricity Distribution Licence?

On 18 December, the National Energy Regulator of SA convened its inaugural Tribunal sitting, setting in motion accountability for municipalities failing to adhere to critical… Read more »

South Africa: Nelson Mandela Bay to Spend R10m Restoring Power After Transmission Towers Collapse

Serious questions have been raised over maintenance failure after two transmission towers collapsed in Gqeberha on Thursday. While the municipality tries to restore power, small… Read more »

Lesotho: Lesotho Village With Solar Farm Has No Electricity

Villagers say they gave up grazing land for solar panels in 2022, but they have not seen any reward. Read more »

South Africa: City Power Backtracks On Banning Reporting Faults Through Councillors, but Only Temporarily

Johannesburg residents often complain that City call centres are not effective. So when City Power told residents they had to communicate with the utility directly, not through… Read more »

South Africa: Joburg Residents in the Dark As Streetlight Repair Time Skyrockets

If you think Johannesburg's streets are looking a lot darker these days, your instincts are correct. A Daily Maverick community investigation has uncovered that the repair time for… Read more »

South Africa: Eskom's 'Stayed' Court Case Shows Double Game Duplicity On Electricity Trading

For months, South Africans have been told that Eskom has "paused" or "stayed" its legal challenge against the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) over the granting of… Read more »

South Africa: Municipal Electricity Failure Is Not Simply a Local Municipal Problem, but a Structural Economic Risk

South Africa's municipal electricity debt crisis is often reduced to a familiar story: failing councils, weak billing systems, political interference and a culture of non-payment.… Read more »

South Africa: Historic St Augustine's Cathedral Plunged Into Darkness Amid Ongoing Vandalism in Gqeberha

Gqeberha's St Augustine's Cathedral experienced prolonged power outages throughout December, caused by vandalism at a nearby substation. Read more »