Ramokgopa: Proposal to involve private sector in solving load shedding nearly done
Electricity Minister Kgosienstho Ramokgopa says his department will soon table a proposal to the cabinet detailing the private sector’s involvement in solving the load shedding crisis.
The government needs at least R390 billion over the next decade to expand the transmission grid.
The minister addressed members of the media during his follow-up visit to Arnot Power Station in Mpumalanga on Monday.
Ramokgopa is set to conduct several other follow-up visits to the rest of the Eskom power stations.
In May, Ramokgopa embarked on the first round of visits to the power stations to assess the performance levels and needs of each station.
“We are on track to reducing, significantly, the intensity of load shedding. Of course, we had a period of eight days of no load shedding and then we hit a snag where we had 11 units that were out as a result of boiler tube leaks. Those units are coming back,” said Ramokgopa.
“So, it’s important that we maintain the reliability of these units so that we are able to restore and maintain the credibility of our efforts and the ability of Eskom to resolve this challenge.”
The minister reiterated that Eskom cannot afford to rely on its ageing fleet of coal-powered stations.
“We need sufficient additional generation capacity especially the renewable energy resources because the Eskom fleet alone will not resolve load shedding and secure energy security. That is why we are investing a lot of effort and resources to ensure that we find a solution for the financing and roll-out of transmission.
“So, we need upward of R390 billion. The Eskom balance sheet won’t be able to carry that. We are at an advanced stage, taking a proposal to cabinet to say this is how we think we can tap into the liquidity that exists in the private sector so that we don’t just over-rely on these units that are ageing.”
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