Will China Come to the Rescue of South Africa's Ailing Energy Giant Eskom?

The China Africa Project

South Africa's state-owned power utility Eskom is in dire straits. The electric power company now has more than $30 billion of debt and its current revenue no longer provides enough money to cover daily operational costs. Now, as a result of the ongoing financial crisis at the company, Eskom is now load-shedding with rolling blackouts across the country. Given that Eskom provides almost the entire country's electricity, the stakes for both president Cyril Ramaphosa and South Africa at large are both enormous. Back in April, there were indications that the China Development Bank might step in to provide $2.5 billion in emergency financing but those talks have now reportedly gone cold. Nonetheless, South Africa's Department of Public Enterprises, who oversees Eskom, says it remains optimistic a deal with China can be reached. This week Eric & Cobus speak with University of Johannesburg professor Hartmut Winkler about the fate of Eskom and what role, if any, is China playing to help salvage the company. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @eolander | @stadenesque | @hawiknowledge1 Email: [e-mail] | [e-mail] Sign up here if you would like to join our weekly email newsletter mailing list for a carefully curated selection of the week's top China-Africa news: http://eepurl.com/dtNEij