Johnathan Paoli
Eskom CEO Dan Marokane has warned South Africans to remain cautious as there is still a possibility of rolling blackouts as the power utility continues to implement its recovery plan to reduce load shedding.
Marokane briefed the media on his run of 100 days as the power utility’s CEO at the Megawatt Park in Johannesburg on Friday and said his first 100 days on the job has been focused on assessing the effectiveness of the Generation Operational Recovery Plan.
Also, Marokane and his team have been reviewing the progress on the implementation of Eskom’s unbundling and engaging with internal and external stakeholders to create and build alignment, as well putting in place the building blocks for the creation of a competitive and sustainable Eskom, he said.
Marokane said the utility’s general performance continues to surpass the winter forecasts for this year, and that the current unplanned outages average is at 12 000 MW.
He attributed the performance to a sustained multi-dimensional program consisting of adequate human resources, aggressive planned maintenance on the back of financial certainty, the use of original equipment manufacturers for critical systems and progressive implementation of interventions.
He further indicated that the improvement in performance has had a positive impact on the utility’s financials given the significant yearly reduction in the usage of diesel through Open Cycle Gas Turbines (OCGTs), resulting in an estimated R4 billion saving in the current financial year.
Despite usage continuing to be significantly lower compared to the same period last year, Eskom remained prepared for the coming colder months, he said.
“With the ongoing colder weather, Eskom will strategically utilise, as planned in its winter outlook, its peaking stations, including the Open Cycle Gas Turbines (OCGTs), to meet the high electricity demand during the morning and evening peaks,” Marokane said.
He thanked the staff of the utility in improving work performance and getting Eskom back on track.
“Eskom’s executives and employees have helped deliver these significant results to date and we have a good base to build on, I have also noticed a significant improvement in morale,” Marokane said.
The CEO confirmed that plans are on track to operationalise the National Transmission Company of SA (NCTSA) on 1 July, following the fulfilment of the suspensive conditions at the end of March.
He said Eskom is concluding the process of augmenting their internal resources with external support for the focused unbundling project management unit to drive efficiencies for the remainder of the program, which is expected to speed up the unbundling process.
“We are putting the building blocks in place to rebuild trust and credibility in Eskom through transparent performance, with the intent to reaffirm the company as worthy of further future investment as we undertake our strategic initiatives. It is our intention to remain a critical player in South Africa’s evolving future energy market,” Marokane said.
The CEO outlined the utility’s strategy in pursuing a number of key initiatives, including increasing the energy availability factor to 70%, returning more than 2 500 MW in capacity to the grid, re-baselining the cost trajectory and improving efficiencies, and accelerating the implementation of initiative to enable a just energy transition.
Marokane concluded by saying that the utility remained focused and prepared for the path ahead.
“Eskom will continue to focus on implementing generation recovery, strengthening governance and tackling crime and corruption, while future-proofing the organisation to enable energy security, growth and long-term sustainability to the benefit of South and sub-Saharan Africa,” he said.
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