Gauteng High Court Rejects Eskom and NERSA’s Tariff Hike

• The High Court in Pretoria ruled against Eskom and the National Energy Regulator of South Africa
• NERSA and Eskom proposed tariff hikes worth over R30 billion, and they appeared before the court, where an application was heard
• The court ruling was the second time in a space of a few months where NERSA lost a court case relating to tariff increases

With 10 years’ experience, Tebogo Mokwena, Briefly News’ Deputy Head of the Current Affairs desk, South Africa, provided insights into the criminal justice system, crime statistics, commissions of inquiry, and high-profile cases in South Africa at Daily Sun.

PRETORIA, GAUTENG — South Africans rejoiced after the North Gauteng High Court in Tshwane rejected the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) and Eskom's bid for tariff hikes worth over R50 billion. This was the second time NERSA lost a court battle over tariff hikes.

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According to IOL, Eskom and NERSA appeared before the High Court in Pretoria. Judge Jan Swanepoel ruled that the public must be consulted in the settlement between the two entities. Eskom approached the court to endorse the R54 billion out-of-court settlement after it applied for a tariff increase. The increase was to be spread over three years with two tariff hikes.

Eskom loses bid to increase tariffs

Swanepoel questioned how NERSA and Eskom arrived at the amount. Swanepoel also said that Eskom and NERSA's decision to amend the tariffs without consulting the public was opposed to the principle of transparency. This was after NERSA approved a 12.7% tariff hike for 2025 and further adjustments for 2026, 2027, and 2028.

Swanepoel also slammed NERSA. He said NERSA's revenue decision was irrational, unlawful, and based on calculation errors. He said NERSA agreed with Eskom because it was embarrassed by its mistake. The court had heard that NERSA undervalued the revenue calculation by R107 billion. NERSA agreed that it was due to a calculation error. Eskom said a R66 billion re-evaluation was acceptable. The two entities agreed on R54 billion.

NERSA recently lost a similar court case on 2 November 2025 when the Pretoria High Court ruled against NERSA's approval of municipal electricity tariff increases. The judge ruled that NERSA's decision to approve municipal electricity tariff hikes without public participation and proper cost analysis was unconstitutional. He also criticised NERSA for saying that customers did not have the right to know how much it costs municipalities to supply electricity.

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SANEDI directed to address electricity costs

In a related article, Briefly News reported that Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa directed the South African National Development Institute (SANEDI) to address the high power costs in South Africa. He said that the price adjustments for electricity strained households and businesses.

Ramokgopa said that the electricity rates in the country were unsustainable. He added that he advised the Electricity Pricing Policy to address the issue. He pointed out that Eskom is doing its best to maintain the national grid, adding that it was stable and strong.

Source: Briefly News