UPDATE 2-S. Eskom, South Africa, says selling assets can not solve problems

* Eskom realizes a profit of 48 million dollars in the first half

* But an annual pre-tax loss of more than $ 800 million

* Asset disposals, debt conversions in equity not useful

* Other options include bail-out, debt relief (updates after comments from Eskom's chairman)

By Alexander Winning

JOHANNESBURG, Nov. 28 (Reuters) – South African power company Eskom said Wednesday that the sale of assets could not solve its problems and that a bailout or a relief from the debt was better, reporting a pre-tax loss of more than 11.2 billion rand ($ 800 million) this year.

Eskom, Africa's largest utility, is working on a turnaround plan to reverse a decade of sharp declines, in which electricity sales have fallen as debt has exploded and society has found mingled with corruption scandals.

It supplies more than 90% of South Africa's energy, making it a critical contributor to the health of the $ 340 billion economy.

"Eskom is experiencing serious financial difficulties, we are in a loss situation," Eskom president Jabu Mabuza said at a press conference.

"All the assets we could sell are the ones that nobody could buy," said Mabuza. "There are other ways, call them any way you want. A bailout, an injection of shares by the shareholder … or debt relief. "

President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed a new board of directors in Eskom earlier this year, one of his first decisions since the replacement of Jacob Zuma at the head of the ruling African National Congress.

But efforts to rebuild society have been hampered by severe budget constraints, labor disputes and fuel shortages that have affected up to two-thirds of its coal plants.

Eskom announced Wednesday a profit of 671 million rand in the six months before the end of September, but said its results over the next six months would be affected by a wage agreement with unions and maintenance costs more high.

This compares with a profit of R 6.3 billion at the end of September 2017 and an annual loss of R 2.3 billion for the 2017/18 financial year.

Eskom's total debt reached R $ 419 billion at the end of September, up from $ 367 billion a year earlier. Its cash flow increased from R8.5 billion to R17.3 billion over the same period, but is expected to be under pressure in the second half of FY 2018/19.

Mabuza d'Eskom ruled out the use of debt to equity swaps to reduce debt, saying the conversion of debt held by a public pension fund, the Public Investment Company, was a "dangerous path".

Chief Executive Officer Phakamani Hadebe said options for government assistance could be an injection of funds or a portion of the government's balance sheet. "Our debt levels have reached certain levels that are no longer viable," he said.