Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan says South African citizens benefit from keeping Eskom state-owned, not the African National Congress (ANC). <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a written reply to a question in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), Gordhan said that there is no government policy on the privatisation of Eskom. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Per the department’s plan for Eskom in a reformed electricity supply industry, the minister said that Eskom is currently being separated into three subsidiaries under Eskom Holdings – Transmission, Distribution and Generation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The objective of the roadmap is to increase transparency, cost efficiencies and foster competition in the electricity sector. The generation, transmission and distribution divisions have been functionally separated
and divisional boards are in place,” Gordhan said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that the National Transmission Company of South Africa (NTCSA) is awaiting to see if it will receive a trading license from the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) after making an application in April 2023. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Distribution Company (NEDC) was also registered in October 2022, and a PFMA 2 application to share assets from Eskom Holdings to the NEDC is being reviewed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The due diligence for the legal separation of the Generation Division has been completed and a New Company will be established once the required legislative amendments are in place to enable such. An intergovernmental steering committee is in place to unlock challenges and address interdependencies,” he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Who benefits <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Gordhan noted that the ANC does not benefit from Eskom being a state-owned enterprise (SOE), saying that it is the people of South Africa who benefit as Eskom plays a significant role in creating and enhancing economic and social well-being for all South Africans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n He said that SOEs have a dual commercial and development mandate, with the state’s development goals including the electrification of rural households, helping to develop skills, localisation and transformation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Eskom has achieved some of these goals, particularly the electrification of rural households, as, according to the World Bank, the percentage of the population that has access to electricity increased from 57.6% in 1996 to 89.3% in 2021. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the SOE is now causing the South African economy major damage through its inefficiencies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The one area where Eskom is clearly failing South Africans is the increased severity of load shedding, with the power utility failing to meet the country’s electricity demand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Although Eskom has attributed a recent lessening in the intensity of load shedding to its increased performance, a reduction in demand has been the key catalyst for load shedding remaining at lower stages for most of this winter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, when a cold front hit parts of South Africa last week, demand increased to a relatively normal level for winter, which forced Eskom to implement stage 6 load shedding. <\/p>\n\n\n\n