Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has justified the spending of over R9 billion on diesel fuel to ensure uninterrupted power supply during instances of loadshedding, asserting that this expenditure remained within the allocated budget.
As per the Cape Times, Ramokgopa emphasised that the strategy to mitigate loadshedding during the winter months would focus on enhancing energy availability. Collaboration with both industrial stakeholders and consumers is planned to curtail electricity demand.
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‘We remain within budget. We are R600 million less than what we planned to spend,’ Ramokgopa affirmed during his media briefing. ‘What we are sharing with you is nothing outside of what we had promised… We did say that at the time it was going to come at great cost to the fiscus,’ he added.
Bheki Nxumalo, Head of Generation at Eskom, delineated their fiscal approach for the recent quarter, underscoring a budget allocation of R9.7 billion. Nxumalo highlighted that the actual expenditure, up until the close of June, rested at R9.2 billion.
‘The idea is really for us to improve on the energy availability factor because that will automatically reduce diesel burnt,’ he said.
The Presidency’s Rudi Dicks initially disclosed figures for diesel consumption in May, indicating a total of R4.5 billion.
‘That is obviously high. As you recall, May was a significantly difficult month for us as many units tripped and failed, and the burn rate was quite high,’ Dicks remarked.
He asserted that the expenses for diesel consumption remained well within the budgeted confines until the culmination of July.
These statements were echoed by Eskom’s Distribution Group Executive, Monde Bala, who highlighted that the unbundling of distribution began with the announcement of a roadmap in 2019.
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