Annaline van der Poel, Chief Operations Officer at Debt Rescue, has expressed deep concern during an interview on Smile 90.4 FM regarding the 12.7% electricity tariff increase, warning of its devastating impact on struggling South African households.
“We know that last year when we conducted a survey on the impact of rising tariffs, consumers were already extremely concerned about affordability,” van der Poel said. “While this increase is lower than the initial 36% requested, it remains an astronomical hike that will have severe consequences on consumer budgets.”
She explained that the cost of electricity has risen by over 408% since 2010, averaging a 15% annual increase, far outpacing wage growth. “Consumers have already cut back as much as they can,” she said.
Listen to the interview here
