Eskom CEO André De Ruyter says there have been wide-ranging acts of sabotage at a number of power stations.
In a statement the power utility said, the contractor admitted to intentionally removing the oil drain plug causing oil burners to trip repeatedly.
Rocks, instead of coal, were also recently delivered to Majuba Power Station. De Ruyter says mysterious failures have been reported as the country continues to endure rolling blackouts.
“The issue is quite pervasive and very serious. We had an incident where an unknown person tried to cut through a conveyor belt, which feeds coal into the boilers, which would have led to significant disruption. We do have mysterious failures, oil leakages, equipment knocked out. So, this is a serious problem and it is quite wide-ranging.”
De Ruyter speaks to SAfm’s Sunrise:
Arrests welcomed
Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele earlier said that cabinet has welcomed the arrest of those implicated in corruption at Eskom.
“We are excited about the arrests. The arrests have been ongoing; other matters are in the prosecutorial space. South Africans, I doubt if they have got a measure of how fraud and corruption has actually deepened the Eskom problem…or even damaging through…the coals,” Gungubele elaborated
Meanwhile, Eskom Chairperson Mpho Makwana last week said there is a task team that was appointed by the Board, expected to deliver a comprehensive report on the challenges and proposals on what needs to be done as part of interventions that will address the electricity crisis.
The Department of Public Enterprises also said it will put money to help Eskom buy diesel.
Report on Eskom expected:
