By Akani Nkuna
The Johannesburg Community Action Network (CAN) has called on Eskom, the City of Johannesburg and City Power to publish the terms of any agreement aimed at averting electricity interruptions in Johannesburg, saying residents cannot be expected to participate meaningfully in a public process while key information remains hidden.
The civic organisation said on Friday that public reports of an agreement to resolve City Power’s debt crisis had not been matched by “tangible evidence” that such an agreement exists, what it contains, or whether Eskom’s public participation process on possible supply interruptions has been withdrawn.
Eskom issued a notice in May saying the City of Johannesburg and City Power owed it more than R5.25 billion in arrears, excluding a further R1.58 billion current account payment due in June. The utility said at the time it intended to reduce, interrupt or terminate supply to certain bulk supply points because of repeated payment defaults.
JoburgCAN managing director Julia Fish said Johannesburg residents deserved clarity, not confusion.
“Johannesburg residents are once again being treated as collateral damage in a crisis they did not create. If there is an agreement between Eskom, the City of Johannesburg and City Power, then the public has a right to see it. If the PAJA process remains active, then residents must be told clearly and given enough time to respond,” Fish said.
She said the uncertainty had become more urgent because residents have been asked to make submissions to Eskom by 17 June on a matter that could affect electricity supply across the city.
JoburgCAN, together with other civic, business and property organisations, has called for the release of the alleged agreement and related correspondence, including communications about the termination of power to streetlights due to non-payment.
In May, Eskom had already switched off some streetlights in parts of Johannesburg after City Power’s small power user accounts, linked to streetlight supply, fell into arrears. The issue is separate from Eskom’s notice on the metro’s multibillion-rand debt, but JoburgCAN said the correspondence was relevant to public understanding of the crisis.
“Keeping the lights on in Johannesburg is a public interest issue. It affects homes, schools, hospitals, traffic systems, businesses, public safety and the local economy. This cannot be handled through vague statements and closed-door arrangements,” Fish said.
The latest standoff follows a June 2025 settlement in which City Power agreed to pay Eskom R3.2 billion over four years, while Eskom wrote off about R830 million in penalties and related costs. Government said at the time the deal was intended to protect electricity supply and improve transparency between the parties.
But Eskom’s May notice said the city and City Power had again failed to honour their electricity supply agreement. Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana has warned the city of serious financial governance concerns, including rising creditor balances and liquidity pressures.
JoburgCAN said it supports calls for the public participation deadline to be extended by 30 days and for Eskom, the city and City Power to publish the terms of any settlement, payment plan or operational intervention.
The organisation urged residents, businesses, body corporates, schools, community organisations and affected stakeholders to submit formal objections before the current 17 June deadline.
To assist the public, JoburgCAN said it had created a simple objection form where residents can record their concerns and object to Eskom’s proposed interruption process.
The form is available at: https://forms.joburgcan.org.za/form-6962220/object-to-eskom-coj-threat
“Residents who pay their accounts should not be punished for municipal failure. The city and City Power must be held accountable, Eskom must recover what it is owed, but the solution cannot be to plunge Johannesburg into deeper instability,” Fish said.
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