Msunduzi Municipality says it has implemented Nersaโs approved 13,32% electricity tariff increase from July 1, 2025, after its proposed 15,5% hike was rejected.
But residents are sceptical citing previous instances where the City council had approved a proposed tariff before it was approved or rejected by the National Energy Regulator of SA (Nersa).
The ratepayers said they will verify the lower tariff once they see it reflected on their July billing statements. Msunduzi Association of Residents Ratepayers and Civics (Marrc) said it was concerned by the increases, despite opposition by most residents earlier this year.
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Chief executive, Anthony Waldhausen, said the increase would have a devastating financial impact on residents. โWe first want to see the 13,32% increase reflected on the July 2025 billing statements, and not the 15,5% that the municipality had proposed.
โWe are deeply concerned by the poor planning of the municipality in their submissions to Nersa, and the delayed response by the latter to have these increases implemented before the budget has been approved by the council.
โThe poor planning negatively affects residentsโ accounts as there have to be adjustments to reflect the new approved increases,โ said Waldhausen.
Other tariff increases for property rates, refuse collection, water and sanitation were approved at between two and 15% earlier this year. Community activist, Pinkey Nundlal, concurred that only July billing statements will prove the actual percentage implemented for July.
We are still planning to fight these increases. With no service delivery and failed infrastructure, what are residents paying for?
โWe are lied to constantly by the municipality. What is to become of our residents who live in the low-wage bracket with all these increases? Do we put food on our tables, or do we pay a failed municipality?
โVast amounts of money can be given to a football team, and lavish parties can be celebrated with ratepayersโ money, yet our city falls into ruin and we, the citizens, have to suffer the consequences,โ fumed Nundlal.
Msunduzi acting spokesperson, Anele Makhanya, said the Cityโs initial 15,5% increase was reduced to 13,32% by the council following a comprehensive public participation process.
โNersa has since approved the municipalityโs application almost in full, with only minor adjustments made to a few specific tariff categories. In some instances, Nersa adjusted certain tariffs slightly lower or higher than those applied for.
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โAs the regulatory authority, Nersa reserves the right to make such determinations in line with its mandate and applicable guidelines,โ said Makhanya.
In early 2024, The Witness reported that Msunduzi Mayor Mzimkhulu Thebolla had threatened to confront Nersa about its continued delay in responding to electricity tariff hike applications, forcing amendments to the Cityโs budget.
At the time, the City had applied to the regulator for a 17% tariff increase for the 2024/25 financial year, which was approved by the council. The regulator responded in June, when the budget had already been approved.
The business community said the process leading up to the approval of the fair tariff remained shrouded in frustration and uncertainty.
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Pietermaritzburg and Midlands Chamber of Business chief executive, Melanie Veness, said it was frustrating that Nersa and the municipality were not willing to make use of the cost of supply study, which is used to determine appropriate tariffs.
Veness said that access to such information would have made a more meaningful analysis possible.
โWeโre not sure how the result was arrived at, as the chamberโs motivation had to be based on the previous yearโs cost of study approach.
We know that the regulator took some of the issues raised in our submission into account in the final decision, but itโs unclear which ones
โAn obvious issue is that the increase appears to have been applied uniformly across tariff categories, rather than being cost-reflective across customer categories, meaning commercial and industrial users will continue subsidising others, which is unfair, and the approach is unlawful,โ she said.