Author: Claire Keeton

Rising electricity costs are leaving millions of South Africans in the cold and dark this winter. Electricity tariff increases averaging 9% for municipal customers kicked in on Wednesday 1 July. This followed a similar Eskom increase three months earlier. Tariffs have risen roughly six times faster than inflation since 2007, a 2026 analysis found. More than a third of South Africans live below the R1,109-a-month poverty line, and electricity price hikes are forcing them to choose between food, warmth, safety or power. Shelton Damon, a casual worker from the West Coast, says, “Electricity is very expensive so we can’t afford to cook…