Bloemfontein -
Electricity users in parts of the eastern Free State who are not paying for power will be cut off.
According to local electricity management company Rural Maintenance, about 40 percent of electricity users in the region's Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality are not paying for their power supply.
“These customers were therefore directly responsible, with all the other such users, of Eskom having to load-shed paying citizens,” said Rural Maintenance CEO Chris Bosch on Thursday.
He said they were going to help Eskom decrease the load on its supply system by disconnecting all non-paying users of electricity in the municipality.
“We simply don't have a choice, and we request the community of Maluti-a-Phofung to assist us,” Bosch said.
The Maluti-a-Phofung municipality includes Phuthaditjhaba, Harrismith, and Kestell.
Eskom earlier announced power cuts were scheduled to last from 9am to 10pm across the country due to seven days of heavy rain having soaked its coal stocks.
Consumers have been urged to switch off all non-essential appliances to reduce the impact of the power cuts. - Sapa