TZANEEN – Residents from Wards 6, 7, and 8 of the Maruleng Local Municipality marched to Eskom’s offices in Tzaneen on Monday, May 12, to submit a memorandum objecting to the continued implementation of electricity load reduction in their communities.

The protestors, who are among those most affected by the outages, come from the villages of Enable (Ward 6), Turkey 1 and 2 (Ward 7), Turkey 3 and 4 (Ward 8), and Makgaung. According to residents, these areas have been experiencing abnormal and prolonged electricity disruptions since last year.

Load reduction is a strategy used by Eskom to manage demand on the electricity grid, particularly when specific distribution networks face overloading. Unlike load shedding, which responds to national power shortages, load reduction is implemented locally, often during peak hours, to prevent damage to infrastructure.

Moses Sebela, a resident of Enable, told the Herald that these outages began in April 2024.

“At first, we were told it was load shedding. Then, two weeks before the elections, it stopped, only to resume immediately afterwards. That’s when we were informed it was load reduction,” he explained.

Sebela emphasised the negative impact on families, especially children and the elderly.

“The electricity is usually off from 05:00 to 07:00 and again from 19:00 to 21:00, just when children need to get ready for school or study. We feel unfairly targeted, and it’s taking a toll on us.”

He added that while Eskom attributes the problem to illegal electricity connections and meter tampering, many residents feel they are being punished for the actions of a few.

“When we first complained, we were told too many people were bypassing meters or buying electricity illegally. We asked Eskom to deal with those individuals directly. They then instructed us to repair our meter boxes, which we did, but nothing changed.”

Sebela also mentioned the financial toll of the outages. “Our frozen food defrosts and goes bad, so we’re forced to throw it away. It’s expensive and wasteful.”

Despite their frustrations, residents say they understand Eskom’s broader challenges and are appealling for a more considerate approach.

“We’re asking Eskom to at least reconsider the time slots. There must be a better way,” Sebela said.

In response, Eskom provincial spokesperson Matshidiso Phaladi acknowledged that customer behaviour is one of the major contributors to energy losses.

“If customers supplied by overloaded feeders stop illegal activities, such as buying electricity from illegal vendors and tampering with meters, there will be an improvement,” she said.

Phaladi added that in addition to behavioural changes, audits on these feeders are necessary to fully address the issue.