ESKOM: A WHOPPING R5 BILLION SPENT ON DIESEL

ENERGY: The latest news filtering through to this publication is that Eskom has forked out a whopping R5 billion on diesel in this financial year.

According to a briefing by energy and electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, the energy parastatal had more than R12 billion in its coffers.

Providing an update in Tshwane on Wednesday, Ramokgopa stated that he acknowledged the power utility experienced challenges at the beginning of the financial year in April.

READ MORE: PICS: SENQU MAYOR DELIVERS SHOES TO NEEDY SCHOOL KIDS

Quoted By DispatchLive, the energy minister said Eskom relied on diesel during the winter season.

“We relied more on diesel to support us during times of difficulty. During winter, when the intensity of demand reaches a peak, is when we are likely to experience challenges if some units fail. We don’t have headroom to absorb failures of units,” said Ramokgopa.

Moreover, the qualified engineer said from April 1 to August 31 2023, Eskom used about R14.8bn worth of diesel.

“We used R5.8bn this year and last year during the period we spent R3.6bn.”

Ramokgopa also noted that the system has recovered and that the country entered winter with a system relatively stronger compared to the situation in 2023, as a number of units were expected to come into play during the winter period.

“All those things have come to fruition and that has made it possible that we have not registered load-shedding,” he added.

Heading to the rest of the winter season and transitioning into summer, the energy utility does not anticipate major surprises regarding grid performance, saying the system is stable and becoming more reliable moving forward.

Ramokgopa also welcomed the news that while there is no load-shedding, many parts of the country are experiencing load reduction. 

South Africa is in the final stages of determining how load reduction will be resolved, he noted while explaining that Kusile Power Station is performing well. 

Despite that relief or improvement, the minister said the focus must shift to addressing the skills gap as they cannot rely on outside parties to perform the minimum function expected of the utility.

“The core function of Eskom is to keep the machines running. You need skills for that,” he concluded.