To misquote Donald Rumsfeld, we still don’t know what we still don’t know. But somewhere between what Andre de Ruyter told Annika Larsen last week, and what he reportedly told Alan Winde in December, the very least I know for sure is that it’s time for you to start doing your sums and seeing how far you can afford to get off the grid.
According to Bloomberg, De Ruyter told the Western Cape premier the province needed “to become [energy] independent as quickly as possible”, because “there’s big trouble ahead”.
Winde said De Ruyter hadn’t elaborated on what “big trouble” meant, but the last week’s headlines have given us an inkling of the sort of thing De Ruyter might have been thinking about.
Again, it is important to reiterate that all of this is just allegation and hearsay so far. It’s possible Eskom infrastructure keeps breaking because of incredibly bad luck, or competent and well-intentioned technicians who’ve just had an off day for 100 successive days, or perhaps because of the intervention of a particularly grumpy fairy who is allergic to electricity.
It’s also possible, however, that this week’s allegations are true and there are four syndicates actively destroying Eskom for financial and political gain.
If this is the case, it seems extremely unlikely there is either the political will or technical capacity to start turning the crisis around while the ANC is in power.
Worse, the looters understand that if the ANC loses ground in the 2024 election, either being forced into a coalition government or entirely dumped out of power, all sorts of money taps will be shut off, or at least become much harder to reach. This makes it more likely that the rate of theft — and therefore the intensity of the sabotage — will spike as we approach the election. (As for what happens afterwards, with both ANC kingpins and Limpopo godfathers trying to cling on to turf, well, let’s burn those bridges when we get to them.)
Private citizens, however, are very much on their own and need to understand nobody in government or business is going to help them cook their food or light their homes.
Of course, the private sector sprang into action to protect its interests, with solar panels spreading across the roofs of malls and factories like a new species of shiny black fungus, and Winde has confirmed the Western Cape will be adding almost 6GW of power over the next 12 years.
Private citizens, however, are very much on their own and need to understand nobody in government or business is going to help them cook their food or light their homes.
No doubt some of you are already some way along this road. But if you haven’t started making plans yet, perhaps because it feels so absurd to have to accept that your country can no longer produce electricity on a regular basis, please take this weekend to look at what’s on offer and what you can afford.
The range is wide and somewhat intimidating to a newcomer, and once you move up from affordable essentials such as rechargeable light bulbs or power banks or a modest UPS to run your internet router, prices range from steep to eye-watering.
A “portable power station” will set you back between R7,000 and R35,000, depending on how much you want to run off it and for how long.
Some can be hooked up to solar panels, which themselves are not cheap but might come in handy should the grid go down. At the top of the range, a 10-panel solar set-up for a home costs about R160,000 (or fractionally less if you use your new, not overly generous tax rebate, which covers 25% of the cost of the panels but nothing else).
There are also companies offering rental options, though most of these get physically attached to your home, which rules out most renters.
And don’t forget the considerable benefit of a good old-fashioned gas bottle and camping hob — that duo provided me and my wife with a splendid meal during our four-hour blackout last night.
Whatever you do, however, autumn is approaching, it’s time to act, even if it’s just to consider your options. Remember: the ANC isn’t going anywhere for at least a year. The damage it’s done may linger for many more. And that’s an awfully long time to sit in the dark.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.