By Buziwe Nocuze
- Thandanani Nkomo of Khayelitsha noticed his electricity buying less in May 2026, three months after Eskom quietly raised its tariff in April with no direct warning to customers.
- The family has bought a 5kg gas cylinder for R168 to cook with and cut back on groceries, using electricity only for the fridge, lights and phone charging.
Thandanani Nkomo stood at the shop counter in Khayelitsha, stared at his receipt, and thought he had been robbed. He had paid R200 for electricity. The units were short. The shopkeeper had to explain it to him.
“I was so shocked to get fewer units to the point that I thought the shopkeeper had scammed me, until I heard they had increased the tariff in April,” Nkomo said.
Eskom raised its residential tariff by 8.76% on 1 April 2026. Nkomo, like many low-income households, was not directly notified. He first noticed something was wrong towards the end of May — a month after the increase had already quietly taken effect.
By the time he stood at that shop counter in July, his family had been absorbing the higher rate for three months.
His receipts tell the story. On 26 June he bought R100 of electricity and received 29.2 kWh. On 3 July, R200 bought 59.30 kWh. On 8 July, R50 bought 14.60 kWh. All three purchases were at 343.61 cents per kWh — the post-April rate.
The family has had enough. They bought a 5kg gas cylinder on 8 July and paid R168 to fill it. From now on gas handles the cooking. Electricity covers the fridge, the lights, and phone charging.
They are also cutting back on groceries.
“We are now buying basics so that we can save money for electricity,” Nkomo said.
Sibusiso Mboto, Advocacy Coordinator at the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice and Dignity Group, said the increase has pushed low-income households into impossible choices.
“It has put further strain on incomes and forced consumers to compromise on food, a situation that should not be allowed. Access to nutritious food should not be a luxury, yet for many low-income families, it is,” Mboto said.
The Cape Town food basket cost R5,298.04 in June 2026, according to PMBEJD. For a household already cutting groceries to cover electricity, that figure is not a budget — it is a gap.
Eskom customers who want to check their tariff or query their prepaid rate can call the Eskom contact centre on 086 003 7566.
Pictured above: Thandanani Nkomo loads his prepaid meter in Khayelitsha, receipt in hand.
Image credit: Buziwe Nocuze
