The City of Johannesburg has settled its outstanding R5.25 billion electricity debt to Eskom, but opposition parties say the payment does not address underlying financial mismanagement.
The Department of Electricity and Energy and the City of Johannesburg announced on Friday that Eskom had received the final payment, settling accumulated overdue debt of more than R5 billion owed by the city and City Power.
The settlement follows an intervention and mediation process established by Electricity and Energy Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, which brought together the city, City Power and Eskom to resolve long-running billing disputes.
The dispute had previously raised concerns over the potential impact on electricity supply in Johannesburg.
Following confirmation of the payment, Eskom withdrew a Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA) process initiated on 17 May 2026 to address the outstanding arrears.
Ramokgopa said the resolution demonstrated the effectiveness of the inter-governmental relations model used to resolve the dispute.
“We are pleased to see this matter reach a definitive conclusion,” Ramokgopa said, adding that the process had helped ensure residents and businesses continued to receive an uninterrupted power supply while protecting Eskom’s financial sustainability.
Johannesburg Executive Mayor Dada Morero described the settlement as a significant milestone in the city’s efforts to improve financial sustainability and responsible governance.
Morero said settling the debt demonstrated the city’s commitment to meeting its obligations while protecting residents and businesses from electricity disruptions.
The city has also committed to keeping future electricity accounts up to date, reducing electricity losses caused by theft and vandalism, and investing in critical infrastructure. The July 2026 current account totalling R1.86 billion is due on 31 August 2026.
Opposition parties demand accountability
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng said the payment did not fix Johannesburg’s broken electricity model, warning that the underlying issues remained unresolved.
The party criticised the timing of the settlement, coming just months before the November municipal elections, and said the ANC-led coalition government had failed to collect sufficient electricity revenue despite continuing to charge residents.
The DA demanded that the city improve billing systems, tackle illegal connections, cut wasteful expenditure and rebuild City Power into a financially sustainable utility to prevent future debt crises.
In June, the party handed over a petition to Eskom with more than 4 500 signatures opposing planned power cuts and demanding that residents not be punished for the city’s financial mismanagement.
ActionSA described the debt as an indictment of the city’s financial management and governance failures.
In a statement issued in May, the party said residents and businesses who pay for services on time were unfairly bearing the brunt of incompetent and negligent leadership.
ActionSA demanded that the city account to residents for how the debt reached such levels, implement consequence management for responsible officials and prioritise service delivery over wasteful expenditure.
The party also criticised the city’s reliance on external loans, including a proposed €200 million loan from German development bank KfW, warning that such measures would place an additional burden on residents.
Continued cooperation
Eskom and City Power will continue working together on infrastructure maintenance, reducing electricity losses and implementing data-sharing protocols aimed at supporting long-term security of electricity supply.
The two entities said their continued cooperation was intended to support reliable electricity supply in Johannesburg, South Africa’s economic and financial hub.
The debt represented approximately 5.4% of Johannesburg’s R97.1 billion budget for the 2026/27 financial year.
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