Eskom has been excluded from national treasury’s updated set of cost containment measures, Business Day reported (paywall) citing a note published by the agency on Monday.

While the rules don’t apply to Eskom, as well as Transnet, they’ve been asked to apply the guidelines that include reduction on hiring, capital spending, travel and conferences.

The norms are intended to help slash expenditure as the government grapples with an estimated revenue shortfall of more than R21-billion.

Earlier this year, national treasury partially exempted Eskom from disclosing irregular expenditure and material losses from criminal conduct in annual financial statements but subsequently U-turned on the strategy.

Finance minister Enoch Godongwana is expected to announce more cost-containment measures in his medium-term budget on 1 November.

Meanwhile, public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan has rejected the Eskom board’s candidate recommendation for the new CEO, News24 reported (paywall), without saying where it got the information.

In reply to questions on Monday from News24, Gordhan’s spokesman, Ellis Mnyandu, said it was a requirement of Eskom’s memorandum of incorporation for the board to submit a shortlist of three candidates.