SA’s electricity crisis won’t be solved by another costly plan

Sadly, it wasn’t an April Fool’s joke when Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa yesterday announced his grandiose programme to expand our national grid, which will cost about R440 billion, or 20% of SA’s Gross Domestic Product.

According to him, this will “unlock” a further 3 200 Megawatts of generation capacity. This, in turn, will create employment opportunities and fire up the manufacturing sector… supposedly.

Yet, it is that very same manufacturing sector which, according to Business Unity South Africa, is being squeezed so hard by soaring power prices that many companies struggle to stay afloat and are forced to pass on costs to consumers.

That, in turn, accelerates inflation and causes… job losses.

Telling a fanciful story has become an ANC ministerial talent.

In reality, private solar power installations have added more than 3 200MW to the grid, which has played a major role in reducing load shedding, whether the minister and his Eskom apparatchiks admit it or not.

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And, in case you missed the news, the electricity mavens are planning to thank you by forcing you to register your private solar installation if it is connected to their grid. And that’s going to cost R20 000 and up.

Lunatics certainly seem to be running the power generation asylum.

Of course, Ramokgopa would probably like to avoid the reality that it is the “eating” by ANC comrades and their private sector accomplices which has led to our grid being in the parlous state it is.

Lack of basic planned maintenance over that time means our power stations are prone to trip at any moment.

And, let’s not forget the most expensive coalfired power stations anywhere in the world – Kusile and Medupi, which have gone way over budget and schedule.

So, Minister, how are you going to stop the looming R440 billion banquet?

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