READER LETTER | Poor pay price for Eskom profit

I find Eskom’s profit story interesting. According to reports, the company has made a profit despite losing thousands of customers in the past financial year. With a shrinking customer base, the only way the state power company can make a profit is through its ever-increasing tariffs.

Eskom is not a private company. It exists to bring light, even to the poorest of the poor. Many people are moving away from the Eskom grid because electricity is expensive.

Well-off individuals and companies have invested in alternative power sources, mainly solar energy. The poor will remain caught in Eskom’s expensive electricity for a long time, as the utility continues to raise its already high tariff.

Eskom’s reliance on high tariffs is not sustainable. The leaders of the state-owned enterprise know that but they don’t seem to care. Tough competition will humble Eskom, and end its monopoly. After all, nothing lasts forever. - Thabile Mange