The public enterprises ministry said on Thursday that a China Development Bank (CDB) loan to struggling state-owned Eskom is not in jeopardy. Eskom had expected to draw down R7bn from a $2.5bn CDB loan facility by late March, but the finance ministry said in a report to parliament last month that the drawdown had been delayed. The delay meant the government had to bring forward a planned bailout for Eskom, which supplies more than 90% of the country’s electricity, but which has been grappling with a severe financial crisis. The government and Eskom are working to ensure the transfer of funds from CDB to Eskom, the public enterprises ministry said in a statement. “It must be emphasised, for the sake of clarity, that this, or any other loan, is in no way connected to the issue of equity in any of our state-owned enterprises,” the statement said. The Chinese loan to Eskom was agreed in July last year, during a visit to SA by Chinese President Xi Jinping. Eskom, which is battling with l...
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