Taxpayers will have to pay for delays in Eskom's Medupi
Natasha Michael, Democratic Alliance (DA) shadow minister of public enterprises, told ESI-Africa that the recent violent protests at Eskom's Medupi power station are going to drag-out power stations construction at the expense of the taxpayer. "The Public Enterprises Committee," Michael said, "has heard nothing from Eskom about the recent delays, despite the power station reportedly being about 20 months behind schedule and the total costs, including interest, amounting to R116 billion and counting."
She says that previous delays have been presented by Eskom as being a mixture of labour relations unrest, design and implementation complications and contractual disputes. "Given the importance of this project to the nation's economic future, Eskom must have open communication lines to parliament on the project's progress. At present, this is not happening." According to ESI-Africa, Michael said that complacency is a luxury Eskom can not afford.
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