- City of Cape Town residents with prepaid meters are exempt from the national KRN2 software update deadline, while Eskom clients need to update by 24 November.
- Confusion has spread due to misinformation on social media, but City customers are assured their meters have been pre-updated.
- Eskom customers can check their meter status and update themselves to ensure uninterrupted power.
With the deadline on vital electricity-meter software updates looming, social media and misinformation has caused widespread confusion.
While pockets under the direct supply of the City of Cape Town are exempt from the deadline, Eskom-supplied clients must ensure compliance before Sunday 24 November.
City clients unaffected
According to the City, the national KRN 2 software update for prepaid clients does not apply to City customers anymore, as all meters had already been updated over the past three years.
“Due to some highly inaccurate and confusing reporting on some news sites,” said the City in a statement, “many City customers are concerned they will not be able to recharge their prepaid meters come the end of November, and won’t have power supply. However, all the approximately 570 000 City prepaid meters have been done.”
While the City supply covers almost the entirety of the southern suburbs, and parts of the northern suburbs, some pockets are Eskom clients.
Consumers are urged to check their receipts, accounts or statements to see who their main supplier is. This is the only definitive way to ascertain if the consumer is Eskom- or City-supplied. This will determine if an upgrade is required under the Eskom programme or if it has already been completed as a City customer.
Deadline for Eskom upgrade
As required by the Standard Transfer Specification Association (STSA), the deadline for the upgrades will be Sunday 24 November.
After this deadline, meters that have not been updated will no longer accept electricity tokens. Failure to recode by the deadline will prevent customers from loading electricity tokens, rendering their meters inoperable. Eskom confirms there will be no extension to the deadline for the Token Identifier (TID) update.
In response to People’s Post’s enquiries, Eskom did not advise the impact or cost involved should a meter not be coded by the deadline, simply reiterating that it will be inoperable due to no longer accepting electricity tokens.
The KRN rollout, commenced in July last year, with Eskom confirming most meters have been migrated to KRN2. “Customers experiencing any issues with vending or loading electricity units are encouraged to reach out to Eskom for support,” writes Eskom.
Check your meter
Simply enter 1844 6744 0738 4377 2416 on your meter’s keypad. The
display will show either a “1” or “2” (sometimes with additional letters).
A “1” indicates that your meter remains on KRN1 and requires upgrading, while a “2” confirms the upgrade to KRN2.
“With the deadline looming, Eskom urges the remaining prepaid electricity customers to complete the recoding process as soon as possible.
“Customers with Voltex meters will require an Eskom technician to complete the upgrade on-site using specialised equipment. These can be identified by the brand name ‘VOLTEX’ and the meter number which starts with ‘22’. There are no fees associated with the KRN2 recoding,” says Eskom.
Eskom has prepared 97% of the meters by pre-coding them, making it simple for customers to complete the process themselves. This Do-It-Yourself process requires customers to purchase credit tokens from authorised vendors, after which they will receive two sets of 20-digit codes to enter into their meters for the update.
Support teams are available for assistance. Customers needing help can call 0860 037 566. For more information, updates, and assistance, customers are encouraged to visit Eskom’s website, follow its social media platforms, listen to radio announcements, or participate in local engagement sessions
