IPPs not to blame for Eskom’s financial woes, says Jeff Radebe
The energy minister says the assertion is both misleading and false because renewable energy produced is cost neutral to the power utility
The assertion that Eskom incurs losses as a result of its Independent Power Producer (IPP) programme is misleading and false, energy minister Jeff Radebe said on Sunday. The IPP programme has been criticised by trade unions, the EFF and former Eskom officials who claim that the costs are responsible for the financial crisis at Eskom, which is unable to service its debt of more than R419bn. Radebe told reporters on Sunday that the renewable energy IPPs were cost neutral to Eskom as the cost was passed on to the consumer. “The assertion therefore that Eskom incurs losses as a result of the independent power producer programme is without foundation, misleading and false. Since 2013, Eskom has not incurred a cent in buying electricity from the independent power producers which they have not been able to recover through the tariff allowance,” the minister said. He said a peek at the financial statements of Eskom reflects that, after deduction of the cost of electricity bought from the IP...
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