ISSUED BY THE PRESIDENCY OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

President Cyril Ramaphosa has noted the resignation of Mr Jabu Mabuza as member and Chairperson of the Board of Eskom Limited.

Mr Mabuza tendered his resignation today, Friday 10 January 2020. In his resignation letter Mr Mabuza apologised for Eskom’s inability to meet the commitment it made to the President, the Deputy President and the relevant Ministers at a meeting on 11 December 2019 to avoid load shedding over this period.

At this meeting, Eskom presented plans to ensure that the risk of loadshedding would be eliminated during the holiday period until 13 January 2020. Eskom also outlined the risks affecting the national grid.

As the Minister assigned responsibility for Eskom, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan has accepted Mr Mabuza’s resignation. President Ramaphosa has expressed his gratitude to Mr Mabuza for serving Eskom and the nation during a challenging period and has commended Mr Mabuza for taking responsibility and accepting accountability for events under his leadership.

Government continues to support the measures being taken by Eskom to restore reliable electricity supply as a matter of priority, and is proceeding with measures to introduce new generation capacity – including self-generation – in the shortest possible time.

In the wake of Mr Mabuza’s resignation, Government will soon announce a re-configured Eskom board with the appropriate mix of electricity industry, engineering and corporate governance experience.
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The President wishes Mabuza well in his future endeavours and his existing leadership roles in various sectors of the economy.