The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) approved an application by Eskom to reduce electricity tariffs by 35% for two distressed ferrochrome operations battling high power costs. More than a dozen smelters have shut down in South Africa in recent years, leading to thousands of job losses, largely due to high electricity costs, which have surged by more than 900% since 2008. The cost of the shortfall should not be borne by standard tariff customers, Majola added. South Africa, the world's biggest chrome ore producer, has lost its position as the world's top processor of chrome into ferrochrome to China mainly due to high electricity costs. Energy-intensive smelters combine chromium and iron to produce ferrochrome, which is mainly used in steel production.