Eskom paid more than 1 billion rand to Guptas

JOHANNESBURG – Eskom paid a Gupta mine this year for coal it did not receive, as the company announced that its coal inventory was at a record high, resulting in power outages.

Eskom has paid Optimum € 70 million since March because of contractual obligations largely developed by former Minister of Mineral Resources, Mosebenzi Zwane, and the group's managing director, Matshela Koko.

This month, Eskom implemented phase 1 load shedding after the supply of its coal plants was reduced to just 10 days.

The factories are supplied by mines owned by Tegeta Exploration and Resources, themselves owned by Guptas Oakbay Investments.

The utility normally retains about a month's supply in case of emergency.

Eskom has maintained payments to Oakbay, despite its liquidity problems, saying it has to do it by contract.

Eskom spokesman Khulu Phasiwe said the utility paid Optimum one ton.

Phasiwe said the contract with Tegeta was in force, even though Oakbay was on bail.

"They are in business salvage and the law says that there is nothing you can do in terms of sanctions until the problem is solved," Phasiwe said. .

"On our side, we only want coal and we are willing to buy from suppliers at a reasonable price.

"All we are saying on our side is that we do not want to enter a field of speculation. We just want to get as much coal as possible.

The Optimum mine has a production capacity of over 200,000 tonnes of coal per month.

However, his contract with Eskom allowed him to double that number to 470000 tonnes per month.

The Guptas bought the mine from the world giant Glencore Mines, for 2.15 billion euros, through Tegeta, under an agreement orchestrated by Zwane just days after its appointment by former president Jacob Zuma.

Eskom then extended an advance payment of 659 million rand to Tegeta to facilitate its public service delivery operations.

Energy badyst Ted Blom has described the advance payment in progress as weird.

"Tegeta exports as much coal as possible to generate cash to stay alive – and even that does not work optimally," said Blom.

Optimum workers are currently demonstrating at the mine to demand payment of their monthly wages.

The National Treasury's report on Eskom this month indicated that Koko was the mastermind behind the advance payment that was approved by the Eskom Council's Special Tenders Committee.

According to the report, it was strange that the advance payment was made just days after the company threatened Glencore with a hefty fine for allegedly supplying substandard coal to Eskom, which Koko wanted to give up Tegeta.

She described the advance payment as a preferential treatment.

"The officials of Eskom and Tegeta have violated section 34 (1) of the Prevention and Anti-Corruption Act," the report says.

"It is however an issue to which Eskom officials concerned have yet to answer to find out why Eskom continued to use coal and impose penalties only afterwards."

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