The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has asked for the development finance institutions to take a larger role in funding Eskom’s capital expansion program as an alternative to the state-owned utility selling stakes in its projects.
Eskom plans to sell about 30% of the Kusile coal-fired power station in Mpumalanga. But in order to attract investors, electricity tariffs will have to rise. Eskom told the National Energy Regulator of SA (Nersa) that equity was the most expensive form of funding, “which will have an adverse impact on tariffs in the long run”.