BY: Kaya 959 News
This month, South Africans will have to hold on tight to their coins as two price hikes are set to strike a massive blow to consumer pockets.
Eskom has announced an increase of 15.63% in electricity tariffs from today while the fuel price is set to increase on Wednesday next week.
National Energy Regulator of SA (Nersa) said an agreement had been reached on Eskom’s allowable revenue for the 2021/2022 financial year. This was confirmed by Justie Joseph Raulinga in February.
Last year, the High Court found that Eskom should recover R69bn over a three-year period.
According to BusinessTech, Nersa had reportedly negotiated with Eskom and reached a settlement of R10 billion to mitigate the risk of the court ordering a R23 billion addition, the amount the High Court had originally found Eskom was entitled to for the next financial year.
This would have resulted in an increase of 21%.
The new court order stated that “an amount of 5.44c/kWh will be added to the average standard tariff for Eskom customers in the 2021/22 tariff year making the aggregate standard tariff for Eskom customers in the 2021/22 tariff year 134.30c/kWh”.
These price hikes are already filtering through to end-users in different municipalities, as seen with recent price adjustment notifications from areas like the City of Joburg.
Petrol hike
Meanwhile, motorists are urged to brace for a record petrol price hike from Wednesday.
The Automobile Association said petrol is set to increase by at least R1 while diesel is expected to increase by 66c and a litre of paraffin will set you back an extra 37c.
Chairman of the Motor Industry Workshop Association (MIWA), Dewald Ranft, said every petrol price increase means more is paid towards petrol costs and less is available for the maintenance of the vehicle.
Ranft offers drivers the following fuel-saving tips:
Accelerate at an even pace in traffic. Short bursts of the accelerator will increase fuel consumption.
Drive in a lane which has the least traffic ahead to maintain a constant speed. The engine management system will adjust the most economical settings for the best fuel consumption.
The first startup after a lengthy stand is the one which has the richest fuel mixture, therefore one must prevent harsh acceleration whilst the engine is still cold as this will spike the consumption figure dramatically. Do not idle a cold engine to warm it up, as this will not improve the fuel consumption nor lengthen the life of the engine.
If you are in a heavy traffic situation and the waiting times are lengthy, do not be afraid to turn off the engine and restart once the traffic starts moving again. Modern engines are now being equipped with this function to aid fuel saving. However prevent continuous switch-offs as this will drain the battery.
Besides driving with fuel efficiency in mind, he also suggests getting creative about how to use your car less.
“Fortunately these days many people are still working from home but are nevertheless still having to ferry children to and from school each day. Car-pooling is a great way to save on fuel expenses and may be something to consider. Also plan your shopping trips better. Avoid several short trips to shops that burn up fuel, by planning and shopping once a week. Finally if you can walk rather than drive, consider this option. It will improve your physical health and financial health,” Ranft said.
