Bailouts for cash-strapped South Africa’s state-owned enterprises have cost taxpayers R456.5-billion over the past nine financial years, and the bill is set to rise to R520.6-billion rand by the end of March next year, according to national treasury.

The aid has been financed by increasing borrowing and cutting back on other budgetary allocations, with spending on infrastructure and essential goods and services the most impacted, treasury said in a presentation in parliament in Cape Town on Tuesday.

Power utility Eskom has received the bulk of the bailouts — it will have received a total of R496-billion by the end of the current financial year.
South African National Roads Agency — better known as Sanral — has been allocated a total of R47-billion.
South African Airways has received R49-billion.
Transnet, the state logistics company, requested R61-billion late last year.

“Broad reforms are under way in energy, freight, water and telecommunications,” Rudzani Mandiwana, treasury’s chief director of asset and liability management, told MPs.