Agri-producers not chicken to take legal action over power cuts

Power parastatal Eskom
may face legal action
following its suspension
of power to several rural
non-paying municipalities
this week – with more to
come next week – which
agricultural producers say
will be a “catastrophe” to
their operations.
Agricultural lobby group
AfriForum lost its urgent
court interdict last week
to prevent the suspension
and over 22 district
municipalities have either
already been suspended,
or face suspension over the
next week.
AfriForum’s legal
representative, Willie
Spies, told FTW that the
lobby group was in the
process of finalising a
more comprehensive court
application that it planned
to present in March. He
believes there are other
ways for Eskom to recover
the money from defaulters.
“This practice of punishing
everyone as a result of some
defaulters will be tested in
our courts,” he said.
Astral Foods CEO Chris
Schutte said in a statement
last week: “To date, Astral
is a fully paid-up client with
the municipality and legal
action against the parties
responsible for placing
Astral in this calamitous
position will be taken.”
The scheduled
disconnection times for
the Lekwa (Standerton)
municipality in Mpumalanga
– set for January 23 – will
interrupt Astral’s feed and
poultry operations.
“We regard disconnection
of electricity supply to
Astral’s largest feed milling
and poultry processing
operations as a catastrophe,”
said Schutte.
“The implications of the
ongoing power cuts cannot
be mitigated and will
directly lead to bird welfare
issues, business interruption
costs and
the loss of
finished
product in
the cold
chain. The
magnitude
of this
decision has
far-reaching
impacts
on the
community,
livestock
and food
security at a
national level.”
He noted that over 11
million birds could be
affected and would need to
be culled.
Astral is the largest
client of the Lekwa local
municipality and, given
the size of Astral’s Goldi
processing plant and the
Meadow Feeds mill in the
town (the largest feed mill
on the continent), is also
the largest employer in
Standerton. Over 4 000
people are employed by the
company
Schutte said Astral
was currently interacting
with various parties to
discuss the far-reaching
implications of the planned
power disconnection, and
the potential economic,
social and animal welfare
consequences.
“The interruption
of supply as a result of
non-payment remains
an agonising decision
for Eskom, but we take
solace in the fact that we
spared no
effort to collect
outstanding
debts amicably,”
an Eskom
spokesperson
told FTW.
He pointed
out that
the power
parastatal had,
amongst others,
embarked on
an extended
Promotion of
Administrative
Justice Act 3 of 2000
(PAJA) process, engaged
all relevant and affected
stakeholders – including the
Department of Cooperative
Governance and Traditional
Affairs (Cogta) and
National Treasury – entered
into multiple payment
plans, and offered the
suppression of future
interest, as an incentive.
Five municipalities
paid their arrears over
the weekend and were
spared from power cuts on
Monday.
INSERT & CAPTION
The implications of
the on-going power
cuts cannot be
mitigated and will
directly lead to bird
welfare issues.
– Chris Schutte