The City of Tshwane’s intention to find a private operator to lease and refurbish two of its power stations that have not been working for almost a decade has sparked a debate whether more municipalities should also do so to address persistent load-shedding.
An Australian company, Kratos Energy, previously submitted a proposal to refurbish, finance, operate and maintain the Pretoria West and Rooiwal power stations for 30 years. The proposal was submitted as an unsolicited bid (a closed offer by a sole provider) but was not approved after an outcry for the process to be made more open and allow other companies to bid to operate the stations.
A year later, the municipality has started with the open process.
“Rooiwal power station’s municipal value is R200m, whereas the Pretoria West power station's municipal value stands at R160m. These values qualify the two power stations as high-value properties and thus require public participation in terms of regulations,” a municipality council lease document reads.
According to the municipality, the stations have not been in effective use for about 10 years and Tshwane has been solely dependent on Eskom for its power supply.
POLL | Should more idle municipality power stations be operated by private companies to lessen load-shedding?
Image: Thulani Mbele
The City of Tshwane’s intention to find a private operator to lease and refurbish two of its power stations that have not been working for almost a decade has sparked a debate whether more municipalities should also do so to address persistent load-shedding.
An Australian company, Kratos Energy, previously submitted a proposal to refurbish, finance, operate and maintain the Pretoria West and Rooiwal power stations for 30 years. The proposal was submitted as an unsolicited bid (a closed offer by a sole provider) but was not approved after an outcry for the process to be made more open and allow other companies to bid to operate the stations.
A year later, the municipality has started with the open process.
“Rooiwal power station’s municipal value is R200m, whereas the Pretoria West power station's municipal value stands at R160m. These values qualify the two power stations as high-value properties and thus require public participation in terms of regulations,” a municipality council lease document reads.
According to the municipality, the stations have not been in effective use for about 10 years and Tshwane has been solely dependent on Eskom for its power supply.
Tshwane power station: 'We were getting paid for sitting and sleeping'
Mayor Cilliers Brink, briefing the media this week, said the municipality planned to lease the two stations for 40 years.
“The start in this process was to seek approval from council to lease these assets and thus on Tuesday the City of Tshwane council approved a public participation report for the proposed 40-year lease of the Rooiwal and Pretoria West power stations,” Brink said.
“The positive outcome of this public participation and subsequent council endorsement will unlock the electricity-generating capacity at Rooiwal power plant that has been dormant for almost a decade and reduce the burden of load-shedding on our communities.
“Every day, rolling blackouts make us poorer and degrade our infrastructure.”
The municipality said the proposed deal was aimed at:
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