Page 13 - Issue 2 2023

VIEWS AND OPINION

Can SA’s load shedding problem

really be solved within a year?

By Roger Lilley, Energize

wede Mantashe, South Africa’s looting of Eskom to go on for so long, the root cause behind load shedding cannot be
minister of energy seems to solved in the short term.
Gthink that if Eskom were to be Rather, it seems that Mantashe’s becoming so embarrassed by the media focus on
under his department’s control, load his department’s failure to do its main job: i.e., to ensure that South Africa has sufficient
shedding would be ended by Christmas. reliable and affordable electricity to enable the economy to grow and support the ANC’s
According to him, load shedding can be National Development Plan, that he blames everyone else for the failure.
ended “if we pay attention to it”. What Eskom cannot procure electricity from outside sources. Only the minister of energy
is the ‘it’? Eskom? Or load shedding? It has the responsibility and authority to source additional energy to prevent load
seems the minister is suggesting that shedding. He has failed to do so.
the ‘we’ in his statement refers to the To respond to the severe impact of load shedding on households, small businesses
Department of Mineral Affairs and and the economy as a whole, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced measures in
Energy. In which case, he’s saying that 2022 to improve the performance of existing power stations and add new generation
his colleague Pravin Gordhan was not capacity.
paying attention to it. Yet very little additional generation capacity has been added. And more and more
While one might consider this voices – outside of and within ANC structures – are calling for Mantashe’s removal as
statement, together with other bizarre the country’s energy minister. These calls have increased following the announcement
statements the minister made in recent that Eskom should be included in the energy minister’s portfolio.
months, the ravings of someone out of Last year, the President announced an increase of licence-free private generation
touch with reality, the concern is that from 1 MW to 100 MW – something Mantashe should have done. One wonders what
other MPs and minsters seem to believe Mantashe’s motives are because it seems that load shedding actually suits Mantashe,
him. Even the minister of finance, Enoch while the media attention on his department’s failure does not.
Godongwana is now saying that load In the meantime, The National Energy Crisis Committee (NECOM) released a six-
shedding can be “a thing of the past month update on progress in the implementation of the Energy Action Plan. This plan
within 12 months”. – announced by President Ramaphosa – includes allowing Eskom to buy power from
But surely, if all that’s needed is companies with available generation capacity through a standard offer.
for attention to be paid to it, load
shedding would have ended years ago.
Load shedding has been “under the
microscope” and people have been
paying attention to it since 2008.
The matter was so much in focus -
and of such a potential embarrassment
to the ANC - that when Jacob Zuma
was president of the country, he gave
Eskom’s management direct instructions
to ensure that there would be no load
shedding during the 2010 FIFA World
Cup which was being held in South
Africa.
The horrible truth is this: Having
allowed the old electrical equipment to
become so unreliable through neglected
maintenance and having allowed the Clothing store during load shedding

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