No single solution to Eskom problems, warns Ramaphosa
President Cyril Ramaphosa has warned that there is no single solution to the crisis at Eskom.
Ramaphosa was responding to his debate on the State of the Nation Address in the National Assembly on Thursday.
Ramaphosa said the unprecedented failure at Eskom's generating capacity underlines the severity of the challenges the power utility faces and the urgency of measures needed to address them.
"For those who have doubted the extent of these challenges, this week’s load-shedding provided a huge reality check. There just is no one silver bullet.
“No restructuring nor re-financing nor cost-cutting nor tariff increases nor better plant maintenance on their own will have the necessary effect," Ramaphosa told MPs.
He said the measures need to be implemented simultaneously to improve the situation at the state-owned company.
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"The decision we announced in Sona to establish three separate state-owned entities - let me be clear - three separate 100 % state-owned entities - for generations, for transmission and distribution respectively has received the most attention but it is by no means the only or most significant measure that must undertaken.”
Finance Minister Tito Mboweni is set to flesh out the financial assistance which will be provided to Eskom during his budget speech on Thursday.
"It has become clear that indeed Eskom does need to be assisted by the state so that it can stabilise its finance because doing so also means we are stabilising the economy for our country,"
Ramaphosa says it will also take the work of the collective to help turn the utility around.
"We have a collective responsibility, some sit on the side-lines and criticise. We are in the ring. We are in the arena doing the work. None of us abdicate our responsibility nor anyone should be left out of this process. Where we disagree we must engage. Let us put the facts on the table, let us examine the evidence and let us together find workable solutions rather than pontificate,"
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