BLOEMFONTEIN – After the announcement that the electricity distributor Centlec will introduce a R50 basic charge for electricity, residents are in uproar.

Tseliso Leba, spokesperson for Centlec, said they noted with concern electronic posters circulating on social media to encourage communities to participate in a planned ‘Centlec Shutdown’ following the introduction of the basic charge.

This charge comes down to R50 for residential customers and R322 (single phase) basic for businesses using prepaid electricity.

“Following a landmark North Gauteng High Court ruling, Centlec has transitioned to a tariff model informed by a comprehensive Cost of Supply (COS) study. The study indicates that current revenue collection relies too heavily on variable energy charges rather than fixed costs,” Leba says.

The court found the true monthly cost of maintaining a domestic connection is R527, yet Centlec is implementing a phased-in charge of only R50 as approved by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa).

Leba said the charge applies strictly to non-indigent domestic customers. All residents on the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality’s (MMM) indigent register remain exempted.

“This structural reform is essential to ensure the long-term financial viability and maintenance of the local electricity infrastructure.”

The High Court ruled that all 177 South African municipalities must use COS studies to determine electricity tariffs. A new basic charge for prepaid customers has been introduced in response to this ruling, and Centlec is complying with the court’s decision.

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The newly introduced basic charge for pre-paid meters is R50 per month for non-indigent domestic prepaid customers. The study found the actual cost is R527 – the R50 fee is a phased, sub-10% implementation of the recommended cost-reflective structure.

Leba explains the R50 is deducted from the first electricity purchase of each month; the remaining balance is used to purchase units as usual. However, all registered indigent households are fully exempted and continue to receive their standard Free Basic Electricity (FBE).

“We would like to assure the community of Mangaung that the newly introduced basic charge is currently being implemented in all metropolitan municipalities within the country,” Leba concluded.