The South Gauteng High Court has ordered the Reef Hotel in Johannesburg to pay City Power R1.3 million towards its outstanding R4.1 million electricity debt before the power supply is reconnected.
The order was made after the hotel approached the High Court in an urgent application in a bid to get power reinstated after it was cut on September 12 during a revenue collection operation.
According to City Power spokesperson, Isaac Mangena, the hotel was one of 10 customers including residential complexes and businesses that were targeted in the previous operation with a combined electricity bill of R43.7 million.
Mangena said on January 22, 2024, the hotel met with the City’s business department to discuss its initial bill, sitting at R3.2 million at the time, and was advised to pay at least 50% of the bill.
“The hotel committed to paying the remaining balance within a reasonable time frame. Subsequently, the hotel requested a three-month grace period to raise over of R1.6 million and promised to settle this by the end of April 2024,” explained Mangena.
Mangena said despite assurance provided by the hotel’s legal representatives in a letter dated February 7, 2024, the debt increased to over R4.1 million after the hotel failed to meet its payment obligations.
He added that after the court ruling, the hotel has expressed willingness to make an initial payment of R1 million and signed an acknowledgement of debt agreement, with R300,000 due by September 23, 2024.
“The hotel proposes to pay the remaining balance in the coming months while continuing to meet current monthly charges. In response, City Power will restore the power supply upon receipt of proof of payment,” said Mangena.
Mangena said the power utility has a backlog of over R10 billion in unpaid bills and the legal victory reinforced commitment to recovering outstanding debts from defaulting customers.
“We urge customers to refrain from using the courts to try and delay paying for services that they have used. We advised those owing the city to simply make payment arrangements rather than spending additional money on legal fees,” he stated.
-IOL
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