Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan Solves Eskom’s Diesel Problem Pushing Back Risk of Grid Collapse

• The Department of Public Enterprises has been working overtime to solve Eskom's diesel problem
• Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan has made a plan and secured 50 million litres from PetroSA
• All that is need not to subvert the risk of total grid collapse is the funding to be approved by Treasury

JOHANNESBURG - Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan may have saved the nation from total power grid collapse by solving Eskom's diesel problem.

The power utility announced last week that it had run out of the financial means to buy the fuel needed to operate its open-cycle gas turbines after the diesel tanks physically ran dry.

According to Gordhan, state-owned enterprise PetroSA has availed 50 million litres of diesel which will be delivered to Eskom by way of pipeline and trucks, TimesLIVE reported.

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While the fuel has been made available, funding still needs to be secured to make the purchase. The public enterprises minister was answering questions in the National Assembly when Gordhan revealed that he met with Finance Minister Enoch Godonngwana on Sunday, 20 November, where money could be found to buy the diesel.

Task teams from the finance and public enterprises departments med on Monday, 22 November, to assess the crisis and Gordhan said that several options were identified. Treasury is evaluating the solutions, but the minister claim he expected a response on funding later this week.

Gordhan added:

“Once we have the funding pipeline sorted out with the Treasury, we can get the supplier pipeline arranged.”

Once the fuel is secured, Eskom will have subverted the risk of more loadshedding and total systems failure. Energy expert Professor Anton Eberhard warned that Eskom's decision not to refuel would remove 2,067MW from rapid response resources from the systems operator.

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Business Tech reported that system failure and total blackout occur when South Africa's alternating current supply frequency becomes too high or too low.

South Africans weigh in on Pravin Gordhan making fuel available

South Africans took to social media to add their opinions on the matter.

Below are some comments:

@SifisoS84321618 claimed:

"That won't stop loadshedding. Andre de Ruyter and Jan Obenhauser will come with another excuse for loadshedding."

@ShaShaLux stated:

"We are in hell."

@Myktheman asked:

"How do you just ‘find’ 50 million litres of diesel? Was it a treasure hunt??"

@CrozierMark questioned:

"Where are the renewable power solutions? Are they fast-tracking them? This is really not the solution!"

@prvtinstigator quipped:

"I knew that if they just looked down the back of the couch and fumbled around a little bit they'd find a little something to save us. Well done!"

EFF member suspected of threatening Eskom COO with bomb granted bail, sa split: “Should be treated as treason”

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In another story, Briefly News reported that Thapelo Mnisi, accused of threatening Eskom's COO, Jan Oberholzer, with a bomb, was granted bail by the Magistrate's Court in Witbank.

According to IOL, the 27-year-old has been identified as the chairperson of the Witbank Economic Freedom Fighters' (EFF) branch. Read more:

The man from KwaGuqa was released on Monday for allegedly sending a threatening bomb attack SMS earlier this year in May.

Source: Briefly News