With electricity tariffs set to rise by 5.36% in 2026 and 6.19% in 2027, South Africans are increasingly seeking ways to curb their energy bills. This trend was on full display at the 2025 KragDag Expo, where visitors explored practical solutions to take control of their consumption.
South Africa’s manufacturing sector is under severe strain. Although output increased by a marginal 0.5%, over 1.2 million direct jobs and millions more in linked sectors still hang in the balance.
The withdrawal of funding from the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) is a setback for South Africa’s move to a low carbon economy. This initiative was designed to mobilise public and private investment to help developing nations transition from fossil fuels to cleaner energy sources and accelerate the decarbonisation of key sectors.
In the 2023 National Budget Speech, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana announced several measures aimed at addressing South Africa’s energy crisis, but it is difficult to predict whether these efforts will be enough, considering the complex and multifaceted nature of the situation. However, they represent a step in the right direction.
In 2022 electrical appliances are working harder to provide South Africans with the necessary comfort. This is as South Africans navigate extremely hot weather conditions in the Western Cape paired with higher-than-average rainfall across the rest of the country due to the La Niña weather phenomenon.
In the 2021 Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) speech, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana explained that over the past 13 years, government has put all its efforts into fixing Eskom rather than adding additional capacity to the grid. However, it has made significant progress in correcting this.