Promise date: 24 May 2022
Due date: 24 August 2022
Source: Facebook video: Joburg Energy Indaba [1:33:31]
Promise outcome: Kept in part
At the Joburg Energy Indaba in May 2022, Joburg mayor Dr Mpho Phalatse gave a timeline for the city’s plans to reduce its dependence on power utility Eskom.
“Within the next three months, City Power [the energy services company owned by the City of Johannesburg] will go out to the market for RFPs or requests for proposals, and that will be followed by a tender process. Once this is done, we can expect to see projects go online in a phased approach over an 18 to 34 months period,” she said.
City Power published a request for proposal almost three months later than promised – on 16 November 2022.
“The Johannesburg Multi-Party Government and City Power are proud to announce that the power utility has gone out to the market to secure excess energy from alternative energy sources through Short Term Power Purchase Agreements of up to 36 months. This positive step towards mitigating and eventually ending rolling blackouts follows commitments made at the two-day Joburg Energy Indaba convened in [May],” a statement read.
Note: Phalatse lost the mayorship through a motion of no confidence on 30 September – after the deadline for this promise. (She was subsequently reinstated.) We asked her spokesperson, Mabine Seabe, why there was a delay in issuing the RFP and will add his comment if received.
Verdict
City Power did go out to the market to secure additional energy as part of its independent power producer programme, but this did not happen within the promised three months.
We rate this promise as kept in part.
– Track My Mayor
Track My Mayor is a promise tracker aimed at increasing accountability at local government level. It was established with support from Code for Africa’s