The town of Frankfort in the Free State managed to keep the lights on for longer by buying solar power from a private producer - until Eskom said no. Residents and local businesses say they are suffering as a result.
The company Rural Maintenance, which manages power distribution on behalf of the Mafube municipality in Frankfort, Tweeling, Villiers and Cornelia, uses solar power that it purchases from a private supplier. When the amount of solar power it uses is more than the amount it has to save during load shedding, it keeps the lights on in Frankfort.
Rural Free State, the parent company of Rural Maintenance, then brought an urgent application in the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg to allow it to continue the initiative until Nersa made a decision. The judge ruled on 20 April that the"applicants' case is not properly before the court and therefore ... stands to fail" because they failed to produce an affidavit confirming the municipality"had authorised the institution of this application",