André de Ruyter Returns to SA as Renewable Energy Consultant After Yale Fellowship

• Former Eskom CEO André de Ruyter has returned to South Africa as a renewable energy consultant
• De Ruyter cited personal reflection and a Yale fellowship as reasons for returning home
• He said that his new role focuses on stabilising South Africa's electricity supply through renewable energy

Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.

Former Eskom Chief Executive André de Ruyter has quietly returned to South Africa, where he is now working as a consultant to renewable energy companies while continuing to teach and carry out academic research overseas on a part-time basis.

Governance failures and criminal networks

De Ruyter stepped down from Eskom in December 2022 and formally exited the utility in 2023, citing serious safety concerns following a televised interview in which he alleged widespread corruption at the power utility. He later briefed Parliament on the matter and published a book detailing governance failures and criminal networks at Eskom. After months of intense public attention, he largely withdrew from South Africa and public life. He re-emerged in September 2023 after taking up a senior fellowship at Yale University’s Jackson School of Global Affairs for the 2023–2024 academic year.

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According to BusinessTech, de Ruyter said his time in the United States allowed him to recover from the strain of leading Eskom, describing it as a period of reflection. He spoke positively about Yale, saying the academic environment gave him space to think, learn and engage with leading scholars and students.

He said his return to South Africa was influenced by the end of his Yale contract and a personal decision about where he and his family wanted to live. Having spent years working in several countries, de Ruyter said South Africa remained home despite its challenges.

Stabilising and securing SA’s electricity supply

Since returning, de Ruyter has taken on advisory work in the renewable energy sector, which he believes will be central to stabilising and securing South Africa’s electricity supply. His involvement in the energy space now sits firmly outside government and Eskom. He has also spent time at Oxford University, where he continued teaching and collaborating with academics on issues related to renewable energy and the green economy, in a role understood to be similar to his fellowship at Yale.

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Describing his current career path, de Ruyter said he now operates as an “itinerant scholar” while consulting in the renewable energy industry, adding that he prefers to keep a low public profile. His move mirrors that of former Eskom chief operating officer Jan Oberholzer, a close ally during his tenure at the utility. Oberholzer later became a prominent figure in the renewable energy sector and now chairs Mulilo Energy.

Eskom Chairman Mpho Makwana resigns

In a previous article, Briefly News reported that Minister of Minerals and Resources Gwede Mantashe is at pains to know why Eskom executives are resigning.

This was after the utility’s chairman, Mpho Makwana, announced that he would be stepping down.

Source: Briefly News