DA finds Eskom’s R840 Million Wilge project abandoned, crumbling and wasted

4 November 2024

Today’s visit by the DA to Eskom’s abandoned Wilge residential development revealed how the national electricity company wastes hundreds of millions of rands, while at the same time seeking to raise power prices for South Africans.

The DA today exposed an R840 million white-elephant residential complex, built by Eskom with taxpayer money, which they have now abandoned to fall into ruin and decay. The buildings stand empty and entirely unused.

After seeing this criminal waste, it is abundantly clear to the DA that Eskom has no regard for the public money it wastes, doing so with little to no accountability.

The most serious hypocrisy of this situation is that this R840 million loss comes as Eskom’s latest tariff hike request is currently before NERSA, asking South Africans to bear the brunt of its financial mismanagement. That Eskom seeks a price hike that could increase our electricity bills by 40%, while wasting R840 million, is unacceptable.

This derelict housing project is just one among several failed initiatives that Eskom has tried to sweep under the rug despite numerous bailouts, totalling hundreds of billions of rands.

Another R250 million was squandered on housing projects in Limpopo, which now stand vacant and neglected. Even more concerning, Eskom sought exemption from the Public Finance Management Act last year, trying to hide the true extent of its irregular, wasteful, and fruitless expenditures.

Eskom also incurred a R24 billion financial loss last year, which includes:

- Irregular expenditure of R5 billion;

- Wasteful expenditure of R105 million;

- Material losses of R6 billion (R81m attributed to corruption; R5.6 billion attributed to “non-technical losses” – money lost to mismanagement of resources and a lack of efficiency).

In light of this staggering waste, the DA is calling for immediate action:

·        Accountability for the Wilge Project: We call on the Board of Eskom and the National Department of Human Settlements to appear before the Energy & Electricity Portfolio Committee, as it is time those responsible are held to account for this monumental failure.

·        Transparency on wasteful expenditure: We call on Eskom to urgently release its 2023/24 Annual Report and disclose details on its financial performance, including irregular, wasteful expenditure and material losses, which have gone unaddressed and underreported.

These steps are crucial in holding Eskom accountable and ensuring transparency for taxpayers.

We call on South Africans to reject and oppose Eskom’s request for an electricity price hike that could raise your power bill by 40% - while Eskom wastes hundred of millions of rands.

Issued by Kevin Mileham, DA Spokesperson on Electricity and Energy, 4 November 2024