By Darren Parker.
State-owned utility Eskom has urged prepaid electricity customers to recode their meters by November 24, as required by the Standard Transfer Specification Association.
After this deadline, meters will no longer accept electricity tokens unless they are updated to Key Revision Number 2.
In response to recent reports, including one from City Power, Eskom has confirmed that there will be no extension to the deadline for the Token Identifier update.
The recoding process affects about 6.9-million prepaid meters in Eskom supplied areas. Failure to recode by the deadline will prevent customers from loading electricity tokens, rendering their meters inoperable.
Eskom has already prepared 97% of the meters by precoding them, making it simple for customers to complete the process themselves. This do-it-yourself process requires customers to buy credit tokens from authorised vendors, after which they will receive two sets of 20-digit codes to enter into their meters for the update.
The power utility said on October 21 that it was intensifying its awareness campaign to ensure all customers are informed and has encouraged those who have not yet recoded their meters to act quickly to avoid service disruptions.
Eskom customers needing help with the recoding of their meters can call 0860 037 566.