
“Free State farmers are extremely disappointed with the price increase approved by NERSA for ESKOM”, says Francois Wilken, president of Free State Agriculture (FSA). “Even though it’s not the total increase that ESKOM requested, it’s still four times more than the current inflation rate!”
From 1 April 2025, ESKOM customers, of which farmers are almost all direct customers, will have to pay 12.7% more for their electricity.
The rates approved are:
• 2025-2026: 12.7% increase
• 2026-2027: 5.36% increase
• 2027- 2028: 6.19% increase
This amounts to a 24.25% increase over the next 3 years.
Wilken says irrigation farmers’ current energy costs are already very high with the heat wave conditions currently being experienced. “Pumps have to run day in and day out to supply enough water for the maize and soya which are now in a high water use phase.”
Against these price increases, FSA expects that livestock farmers in particular, who still have ESKOM lines on their farms for water supply to livestock and households, will completely switch off the ESKOM network to switch to solar power systems.
FSA made its opposition to ESKOM’s proposed increases in a submission to NERSA on 25 November 2024, where it was made very clear that any increase in ESKOM prices is actually unaffordable for farmers in the current economic conditions.
(See FSA’s submission and media release of 25 November 2024 at https://vrystaatlandbou.co.za/af/free-state-agriculture-opposes-proposed-eskom-tariff-increases/ )
A major obstacle to making alternative energy more affordable for farmers is the fact that farmers are not allowed to feed their power into the grid. FSA will continue to negotiate for these and other ways to provide affordable power to farmers.
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