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Bloomberg reports that Cosatu will present its proposal to rescue state-owned power utility Eskom to senior members of government and the business community on Monday.
The labour federation wants the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and state lenders (the Industrial Development Corporation and the Development Bank of Southern Africa) to take over R254 billion of the company's debt, Matthew Parks, Cosatu's parliamentary co-coordinator, said in an interview on Friday. "We are ready for a fight," Parks said, adding that the federation was aware there would be opposition to the plan. The alternative was that Eskom would collapse, causing economic pain and job losses, he opined. The meeting on Monday will be with the President's Working Council, which includes government, business and labour leaders. The plan would leave the embattled power company with R200 billion of debt, an amount it has previously said it could manage. Eskom is failing to cover its running costs and inadequate maintenance is leading to frequent plant breakdowns and rolling power outages. Those are stalling economic growth. The PIC, which has more than R2 trillion under management, manages the investments of the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF), as well as unemployment and worker-compensation funds. Under the agreement, the PIC would provide the bulk of the debt relief, due to its size, and the government could also make a contribution depending on its finances, Parks stated.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Antony Sguazzin at Fin24
- Read too, Cosatu has a comprehensive debt recovery plan to save Eskom, at Mail & Guardian
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page