JOHANNESBURG - Eskom and City Power have struck a R3.2 billion settlement deal in a bid to deal with Johannesburg's electricity supply issues and long-standing billing dispute.
The agreement comes after Eskom warned in November that it would cut off power to Johannesburg residents over a disputed R4.9 billion debt.
Now, Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa says City Power will pay the R3.2 billion over four years outside the winter period.
Ramokgopa revealed this on Tuesday as he gave an update on the dispute between the two power utilities.
According to the minister, R830 million of the total has been written off as it relates to interest charges that City Power will no longer pay.
Residents have been battling incorrect billing for decades, and the city's revenue collection is far from efficient.
Reacting to this settlement, Joburg Mayor Dada Morero says this is a fair settlement and that through these four years of the settlement, residents will not be affected.
"Consumers will not be affected as this is a dispute between ourselves and Eskom based on what we were paying on bulk purchases and what we have been billed by Eskom," he said.