DA calls on ANC to support our Cheaper Electricity Bill as Eskom projects another R20bn in losses

Eskom today confirmed that the utility is projecting another R20 billion loss for the current financial year. Eskom’s continued poor financial showing seems to be more consistent than its ability to keep the lights on.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) reiterates our call for a complete overhaul of the power utility. Eskom has become an albatross of our economy – as it poses the single biggest risk to our fiscus.

On Tuesday, 3 December 2019, the DA Chief Whip, Natasha Mazzone, will officially present the Party’s Cheaper Electricity Bill to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee of Public Enterprises.

This Bill provides a legislative framework to lower the cost of electricity and boost the reliability of supply. It seeks to split Eskom into two entities – a generation entity and a transmission/distribution entity.

At the core of the DA’s plan is the creation of a privatised generation entity that would break Eskom’s monopoly on the production of energy enabling and ensuring that it competes on an equal footing with Independent Power Producers (IPPs).

The DA is of the view that this is the only way to guarantee a profitable, efficient Eskom and an energy secure South Africa.

We have reached a stage with Eskom where we have to put our political differences aside, as it is in all of our mutual interests to ensure that Eskom gets back to working for all South Africans. Failure to this will result in, not only the collapse of Eskom but the collapse of South Africa.

Statement issued by Ghaleb Cachalia MP, DA Spokesperson on Public Enterprises, 28 November 2019