Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. of South Africa stated that the amount of investment needed to implement its energy-transition strategy could potentially reach 1.2 trillion rand ($71 billion), with the majority of the funds coming from private investors.
The state-owned utility, which owes 396 billion rand in debt, intends to turn to private investors to raise the 990 billion rand necessary to finance additional generation capacity and a transition to cleaner energy sources by 2030, Matthew Mflathelwa, general manager for strategy and planning, said in an interview Wednesday in Johannesburg.
According to him, the company needs the funding to build new generation facilities while also extending the life of its current infrastructure.
Eskom cannot cover all of it, according to Mflathelwa. “We would need a partnership of some sort, whether it be at the institutional level or at the level of a global corporation Those particulars, in my opinion, need to be worked out.
The shift of South Africa away from coal, which currently provides more than 80% of its power, is being aided by pledges of $8.5 billion in investment from some of the richest countries in the world. In an effort to end a 14-year energy crisis, President Cyril Ramaphosa outlined measures this week to allow increased engagement by the private sector in the production of electricity.
