Municipalities do not have an absolute monopoly to supply electricity, Eskom argues in its legal battle against Tshwane metro that has turned into a tussle over the interpretation of the constitution as it seeks to supply electricity directly to residents.
The interpretation of the constitutional provision that stipulates a municipality has executive authority and the right to administer electricity reticulation has come into sharp focus in the legal showdown between the Tshwane metro and the power utility.
The metro recently succeeded in its legal battle to strip Eskom of the right to supply electricity to a R30bn property development in the east of Pretoria.
