Sentech interim CEO Tebogo Leshope said the SABC’s unwillingness or inability to pay its signal distribution fees is of “great concern”.

This is because the state-owned broadcasting signal distributor needs continuous payments to service its own creditors.

“We have services for which we need to pay – for satellite, for technology, so we need some cash flow,” he said.

“Both the SABC and Sentech boards are assisting and are in discussions about the outstanding issues and there is a team dedicated to trying to find a solution and explore alternatives.

“Our approach is to bring it to the attention of government and see what can be done. But at the end of the day, the SABC is still our customer and we are hoping for the issue to be resolved by the end of the year.”

It emerged in parliament this week that the SABC owes Sentech more than R700-million. Deputy communications minister Philly Mapulane told MPs that the SABC is not only technically insolvent but owes Sentech about half of its annual revenue.

Mapulane told parliament that if the situation is allowed to continue, it will “impact heavily on the sustainability” of Sentech. “It has the ability to collapse this entity if you consider that the revenue of Sentech is hovering around R1.4-billion.”