Ezra Construction and Development Group Limited (ECDG) has openly rejected Kiir’s directive to cut electricity tariffs, triggering a power struggle over control of the Juba Electricity Distribution Company (JEDCO), the country’s main electricity distributor.
Last week, Kiir authorised the Power Purchase Committee to implement sweeping reforms at JEDCO aimed at easing the burden on consumers. Ezra, then the majority shareholder in the company, responded with a letter instructing JEDCO’s managing director, Wondimu Tenkir, not to enforce the presidential order.
“As the majority shareholder of Juba Electricity Distribution Company Ltd, you are hereby instructed to hold the implementation of the directives issued by the Ministry of Energy & Dams referencing the said Republican Order,” reads the October 1 letter.
Ezra said it had written to the Ministry of Energy and Dams seeking clarity on the legal basis and implementation of the order before taking action.
“We have requested mutual discussions with our partners, the Ministry of Energy & Dams and the South Sudan Electricity Corporation, because the Republican Order lacks clarity. We need to safeguard our investment in the energy sector while ensuring that the government’s fiscal concerns are addressed in a technically sound manner,” the company said.
Until the dispute is resolved, Ezra directed JEDCO to continue operating under the existing contractual framework.
In an order broadcast on state-run SSBC, Kiir announced wide-ranging tariff reductions, slashing domestic, commercial and industrial electricity rates, scrapping household service charges and sharply reducing connection fees.
“For less than 100 kWh, the tariff is reduced from $0.303 to $0.273. For more than 100 kWh, the tariff is reduced from $0.316 to $0.285. The monthly service charge of $3.01 on single-phase connections is hereby cancelled,” the order declared.
Connection fees were also cut, with direct single-phase connections reduced from $320.26 to $128.10 and low-voltage extensions from $998.66 to $399. Commercial tariffs fell from $0.348 to $0.32 per kWh, while government institutions will now pay $0.316 instead of $0.336.
Industrial users also benefited from lower tariffs and reduced service charges on three-phase connections, alongside cuts to meter and extension fees.
Kiir further restructured JEDCO, increasing the government’s stake to 60% through the South Sudan Electricity Corporation, while Ezra retains 40%.
Digital public infrastructure under strain
Policy analysts say the tariff dispute exposes a core vulnerability in South Sudan’s DPI ambitions, which they say is the lack of stable, affordable electricity needed to support digital payments, online public services and data-driven governance.
Digital systems such as mobile money platforms, biometric registration, digital identification and e-government services depend on reliable power supply. In much of the country, frequent outages and high electricity costs force businesses and service providers to rely on generators, driving up costs and limiting adoption.
“When electricity itself is unstable or contested, digital infrastructure cannot scale,” said a Juba-based technology policy analyst. “It affects everything from mobile money agents to government digital platforms.”
The standoff also highlights governance challenges in sectors critical to DPI, where overlapping authority between the state and private investors can delay reforms and weaken public trust.
As South Sudan seeks to expand digital services amid fragile institutions and heavy private-sector involvement in essential utilities, analysts warn that unresolved power sector disputes risk slowing progress toward inclusive and functional digital public infrastructure.
Ezra Construction & Development Group, a foreign investor, remains at the centre of the dispute as it resists implementing the presidential order, underscoring the complex link between electricity governance, political authority and South Sudan’s digital future.
It’s not sensible for JEDCO to outrightly reject the Presidential Order as reported by many media outlets instead of accepting the restructure of tarrifs in principal and engange with the line ministry, department and VP for Service Cluster to find an amicable solution.