LAST week, Eskom once again threatened to cut power supply to the towns of Cradock and Middelburg.
In a notice published in Die Burger Oos-Kaap on Friday, October 4, the electricity giant announced that the Inxuba Yethemba Local Municipality (IYM) was once more in breach of its payment obligation to Eskom, and that power interruptions would commence on Monday, 21 October.
IYM currently owes Eskom R114 017 556.95.
As far as Komani-Karoo Express has been able to determine, R8 million in equitable shares was paid over to Eskom in July, and R10 million was paid on behalf of IYM by the Chris Hani district municipality.
Besides another R1 million recently paid, it seems that IYM has been unable to pay its current account of between R6 million and R8 million per month, nor any additional payments towards its Eskom debt.
The municipality, financially assisted by Rolfe Laboratories in Middelburg, managed to get an interdict earlier this year to prevent Eskom from cutting power.
After getting wind of Eskom’s renewed intentions to cut the electricity supply to the two towns of IYM, the attorney representing the Middelburg and Cradock Business Forums, Bryn Brodie, consulted with the relevant judge presiding over the interdict case in Makhanda.
“For now, we urge residents not to panic,” said Engela Kruger, chairperson of the Middelburg Forum.
“The court case to force IYM legally to ring-fence all electricity income and pay it over to Eskom monthly, will continue, and is treated as a matter of urgency by our attorneys.
“We will not be deterred, even though IYM is doing everything in its power to stall the legal process.”
On Tuesday, an agreement was reached between Eskom and the two towns’ forums, according to which Eskom undertook not to cut power supply, pending the ring-fence case between the forums and IYM.
Later the same day, Eskom attorneys wrote a letter to the forums’ attorneys, withdrawing the notice published in newspapers, stating that it was published in error.
“Kindly note that this correspon-dence serves as an undertaking from (our) client not to institute the power interruptions at the Municipality,” the letter, signed by Yanda Mnqaba from Smith Tabata Attorneys for Eskom, read.
