Eskom got it wrong. Kusile billions have nothing to do with Gupta mine

Eskom’s R4 billion overpayment saga has nothing to do with the dispute between the national power utility and Gupta-linked Tegeta Exploration and Resources over the delivery of substandard coal, Public Enterprise Minister Pravin Gordhan says.

This came after Parliament’s standing committee on appropriations demanded an explanation from Eskom over the “overpayment”, which the committee had last year been told was an “administrative error” and negotiations were under way to recoup the money, according to chairperson Sfiso Buthelezi.

However, Buthelezi had mistakenly stated that the figure was R5 billion and during a subsequent meeting the committee secretary confirmed in the records of the onsite visit last October at Megawatt Park that the correct figure was R4 billion. The money was related to work at Kusile Power Station in eMalahleni in Mpumalanga.