The South African government may need to enforce power cuts or raise electricity tariffs further if a disputed $3.75 billion loan from the World Bank is not approved, a senior government official said today.

"If they say no, we will either increase the tariffs or we will face serious blackouts," Director General at the Ministry of Energy Nelisiwe said.

The United States and Britain have threatened to withhold support for the loan supposed to pay for a coal-fired plant in South Africa, expanding the battleground in the global debate over who should pay for clean energy.

Magubane said South Africa was not asked to provide an alternative to coal in its application for the loan.

State-owned utility Eskom is seeking the loan, intended to help expand power generation capacity to meet fast-rising demand. – Reuters.