The ANC’s top decision makers have met to discuss how to deal with ailing state-owned companies whose deteriorating finances have emboldened critics of President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Eskom has admitted it has a solution to its highly unreliable ageing fleet of coal power stations. This time, however, the plan is not the clichéd definition of insanity (which seems to have been the plan over much of the last decade).
The energy minister’s reluctance to fast-track renewable power projects could prolong the electricity shortages, which have caused the economy to stagnate and sapped investor confidence.
Government is reviving a so-called energy “war room” to tackle the nation’s electricity crisis, as it brought forward the date when the incoming CEO of the state power utility will start work.
Cabinet has mandated public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan to engage the newly appointed Eskom chief executive, André de Ruyter, on the possibility on commencing in the role earlier than anticipated.
For the second year in a row, Eskom management and key staff members will not take leave in the festive season as the power utility struggles to halt power outages.
Government will relinquish control of the loss-making national airline and give it an additional bailout in a bid to stave off liquidation.
Andre de Ruyter has been appointed as CEO of Eskom, the debt-strapped utility that provides about 95% of the nation’s electricity and poses the biggest threat to its economy.
While the government pledged to name a new head of Eskom by the end of October, it’s missed repeated deadlines to act, evidence of how politically fraught the process has been.
National treasury wants to forge ahead with long-stalled plans to sell state assets to shore up the nation’s shaky finances despite opposition from other government departments and labour unions.
