Amid Johannesburg’s latest electricity billing chaos, Joburg residents have received some rare good news. The City of Johannesburg has announced a waiver on late payment interest for municipal services for March and April 2023 municipal services. 

The decision comes in the wake of recent maintenance on the city’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, which led to delays in issuing monthly statements and subsequent missed payments by some customers.  

The maintenance of the ERP system was aimed at enhancing service delivery but inadvertently disrupted billing cycles. 

To mitigate confusion, the City of Johannesburg has clarified that April bills may reflect both March and April charges. Additionally, customers using fixed payment due dates may receive statements for March this month, incorporating overdue amounts.

The MMC for Finance, Dada Morero, emphasised that the maintenance, though disruptive, was essential to enhance service delivery. The irony is not lost on us either. Acknowledging the inconvenience caused, Morero assured residents that no interest would be levied except for accounts with outstanding debts before the system maintenance. 

However, the billing turmoil is just one facet of Johannesburg’s electricity woes. Come 1 July, properties in Johannesburg face a proposed 18.64% average electricity increase for the 2023/24 financial year. This is despite the imposition of a hefty 60% markup on electricity in Johannesburg. 

Adding to the ongoing billing saga, Eskom has filed an urgent court application against the City of Johannesburg’s power entity, City Power, demanding the payment of a staggering R1 billion outstanding bill. 

Eskom’s application aims to address the issue of the unpaid bill, which it asserts is crucial for safeguarding its financial stability and ensuring the maintenance of essential infrastructure. 

The matter, which will be heard in the High Court on 4 June, has been further complicated by the City of Johannesburg’s declaration of a dispute over potential overbilling on bulk purchase invoices dating back to 2021. 

Despite the accusations of overbilling, Eskom maintains that such disputes do not absolve municipalities of their legal obligations to make payments promptly. 

As residents struggle to keep up with Johannesburg’s electricity billing system’s rollercoaster, this month’s waiver on late payment interest comes as a much-needed reprieve.