South African city wants to charge a monthly levy to households with solar panels on their roofs

Emfuleni Local Municipality, which includes Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging, wants to implement an application fee and a monthly levy on households with solar panels.

This is the warning from Freedom Front Plus councillor Gerda Senekal, who said they will oppose the new application fee and monthly levy.

The Emfuleni Local Municipality has made headlines for its severe and long-standing instances of municipal collapse.

A combination of political instability, financial mismanagement, and dilapidated infrastructure has created a crisis in the industrial municipality.

The collapse of Emfuleni’s wastewater management is the most visible failure, drawing the ire of environmental groups and human rights watchdogs.

For years, broken pump stations and neglected wastewater treatment plants have discharged raw, untreated sewage directly into the Vaal River.

Emfuleni’s finances are also in a dire state. The municipality has been on the brink of total bankruptcy for years.

Service delivery and financial problems have reached such alarming levels that the ANC removed Sipho Radebe as the municipality’s executive mayor.

Given the financial challenges in the Emfuleni Local Municipality, it is not surprising that it is seeking new ways to generate revenue.

During the latest council meeting, the council approved, in principle, a proposal to generate revenue from solar power installation.

It wants to charge an application fee of approximately R2,400 when a resident applies to install solar panels and connect them to the power grid.

In addition, these residents will have to pay a monthly levy of R463 to generate their own reliable electricity.

“This levy and application fee are nothing but a desperate attempt by Emfuleni to generate revenue,” said Senekal.

She added that residents will have the opportunity to oppose this application fee and levy when the process is opened for public participation in the near future.