South African's pay electricity rates way, way below the world average. I hate to say this but prices need to go up to pay for new capacity. If it doesn't come out of electricity users it will come out of other taxes.

All the careful consideration without thorough, hands-on investigation and assessment of the reality of the economic short-fall claims, are not worth a LIGHT, - excuse the pun! Get your backsides out of those plush, comfortable chairs, and get some exercise for a change. The exercise in carrying out an effective exercise will get you all physically fit, and will possibly, if done with honest, dogged determination and enthusiasm, produce results that will make everyone very proud, and also determined to get super-fit on an ongoing basis in getting the job done!

The fact that the National Energy Regulator would even consider an application for this ridiculous price hike is pathetic. It should have been thrown out immediately. Eskom should find other means of financing its expansion. It is unfortunate that in a relatively new democracy and developing economy that the consumer has to foot the bill for poor management and bad planning. Are we not paying enough tax already? Why are these executives, tasked with managing a large parastatal, being paid fat salaries/bonuses even though they are apparently incompetent? Succession planning becomes ever more important in this instance. Maybe government should consider privatising Eskom.

Escom's Board must consider what the effect would be on the end consumers if they were to supply electricity directly to all end consumers by cutting out local governments to whom they sell electricity in bulk, who then in turn - at a profit - distribute electricity to the end consumer.