New CEO will have the tough task of turning the utility into a viable business
14 August 2019 - 18:20
byPaul Burkhardt, Antony Sguazzin and Loni Prinsloo
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Electrical power lines hang from transmission pylons outside the Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. Grootvlei coal-fired power station in Mpumalanga, South Africa, on Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2019. Eskom, Picture: BLOOMBERG/WALDO SWIEGERS
The CEO role at Eskom, considered the most challenging job in corporate SA, is attracting interest from people who know how difficult it will be to turn around the debt-ridden state utility.
Andy Calitz, the former CEO of LNG Canada, who started his career as an electrical engineer at Eskom and later held various senior posts at Royal Dutch Shell, confirmed he had applied for the job and declined to comment further.
Dan Marokane, Eskom’s former head of group capital, has also applied, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation, who asked not to be identified because he isn’t authorised to comment. Marokane declined to comment.
Business leaders suggested to Eskom’s board that former CEOs Brian Dames and Jacob Maroga also be considered for the post, according to another source. Neither responded to a request for comment.
Phakamani Hadebe stepped down as head of the utility at the end of July and chair Jabu Mabuza has temporarily taken over the position until a permanent appointment is made.
Eskom’s new leader will have to turn around a company that supplies about 95% of the country’s power yet isn’t generating enough income to cover its costs, is saddled with R440bn of debt and poses a serious threat to the economy. The government has given the utility a three-year, R128bn bailout, but that’s unlikely to be enough to get its finances back on track.
Maroga’s departure from Eskom was acrimonious — the utility said it accepted his offer to resign in 2010, but he claimed he’d been unlawfully dismissed and filed an unsuccessful application for reinstatement.
Marokane was one of three executives, including then CEO Tshediso Matona, suspended by Eskom’s board in 2015 amid an independent inquiry into the electricity producer’s performance. They eventually agreed to part ways amicably, and Eskom said it had never alleged that Marokane was guilty of misconduct or wrongdoing.
Applications for the CEO role closed on August 2. Mabuza said in July he would relinquish the post by the end of October.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Former Eskom bosses line up for top job
New CEO will have the tough task of turning the utility into a viable business
The CEO role at Eskom, considered the most challenging job in corporate SA, is attracting interest from people who know how difficult it will be to turn around the debt-ridden state utility.
Andy Calitz, the former CEO of LNG Canada, who started his career as an electrical engineer at Eskom and later held various senior posts at Royal Dutch Shell, confirmed he had applied for the job and declined to comment further.
Dan Marokane, Eskom’s former head of group capital, has also applied, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation, who asked not to be identified because he isn’t authorised to comment. Marokane declined to comment.
Business leaders suggested to Eskom’s board that former CEOs Brian Dames and Jacob Maroga also be considered for the post, according to another source. Neither responded to a request for comment.
Phakamani Hadebe stepped down as head of the utility at the end of July and chair Jabu Mabuza has temporarily taken over the position until a permanent appointment is made.
Eskom’s new leader will have to turn around a company that supplies about 95% of the country’s power yet isn’t generating enough income to cover its costs, is saddled with R440bn of debt and poses a serious threat to the economy. The government has given the utility a three-year, R128bn bailout, but that’s unlikely to be enough to get its finances back on track.
Maroga’s departure from Eskom was acrimonious — the utility said it accepted his offer to resign in 2010, but he claimed he’d been unlawfully dismissed and filed an unsuccessful application for reinstatement.
Marokane was one of three executives, including then CEO Tshediso Matona, suspended by Eskom’s board in 2015 amid an independent inquiry into the electricity producer’s performance. They eventually agreed to part ways amicably, and Eskom said it had never alleged that Marokane was guilty of misconduct or wrongdoing.
Applications for the CEO role closed on August 2. Mabuza said in July he would relinquish the post by the end of October.
Bloomberg
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