Eskom accused of dirty tricks with new business in South Africa
Eskom’s entry into the public electric vehicle (EV) charging industry has raised concerns among private charge point operators, who allege abuse of its position as the country’s dominant electricity distributor.
The power utility launched its EV charging pilot in August 2024, initially installing 10 charging stations across five of its own properties.
It explained the rollout was in preparation for the electrification of its vehicle fleet and its commitment to supporting the local e-mobility sector.
In September 2025, Eskom unveiled its first fleet of 20 EVs and announced it would roll out 55 public EV charging stations over two years.
Later that same month, Eskom announced it had signed a memorandum of cooperation with BYD Auto South Africa to explore expanding public charging infrastructure in key locations.
MyBroadband recently received a photo from a reader of an Eskom-branded EV charger deployed at the Pavilion Shopping Centre in Durban.
A source in the industry told MyBroadband that Eskom’s entry into the public charging sector was great for EV drivers, but it could present a major business risk for private charge point operators (CPOs).
They explained that Eskom was in a position to offer properties specific tariff deals for electricity if they agreed to install its chargers.
They were also worried that the power utility might impose punitive charges on property owners who did not want to install chargers or who preferred other CPOs’ solutions.
“They are basically approaching it like ‘let us put a charger here, and we’ll play nice and provide nice tariffs, or we’ll do the inverse if you don’t allow us,'” the source alleged.
The source said one CPO’s proposal at a mall in Cape Town was delayed after Eskom entered the picture and presented such a deal.
Eskom is no stranger to special tariffs
It would not be unprecedented for Eskom to give certain businesses preferential tariffs, especially in cases where it would be financially beneficial to the utility.
For example, Eskom entered into Negotiated Price Agreements (NPAs) with several aluminium and ferrochrome smelters in recent years.
These controversial deals gave the smelters much lower electricity tariffs than the average household and business in South Africa pays.
In the case of the most recent NPA signed with Samancor Chrome and Glencore Merafe, Eskom offered a rate of 62 cents per kilowatt-hour, a seventh of the price its average Homepower 4 user pays.
Eskom, the government, and the companies benefiting from the NPAs have defended the agreements as necessary to save thousands of jobs and economic activity.
However, energy expert Chris Yelland has questioned whether the broader economic impact of subsidising discounted tariffs with revenue from other users, who pay standard rates, was worse.
Yelland also highlighted that the mandate of the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) included ensuring that Eskom implemented non-discriminatory pricing.
It seemed unlikely that Nersa would look kindly on Eskom offering special reduced-tariff deals to specific commercial property owners, some of whom might already have chargers.
Property owners who agree to roll out Eskom’s chargers might be willing to pass on the savings from the discounted rate to end-users, making their chargers more attractive.
Eskom is already benefiting from the usage of most public charging stations, which get their electricity from the power utility.
However, many businesses have reduced their reliance on Eskom’s electricity by supplementing their demand with rooftop solar generation, which the power utility might want to discourage.
MyBroadband asked Eskom for comment about the allegations, but it did not provide feedback by the time of publication.
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