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| Brian Molefe Acting CEO, Eskom. |
SIKI MGABADELI: Current Transnet chief Brian Molefe has been appointed as new acting CEO of struggling power utility Eskom. Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown said Brian Molefe’s secondment to Eskom as acting chief executive officer is with immediate effect. As you know, Eskom has been forced to implement rolling blackouts this year, following the collapse of one of its coal storage silos, diesel shortages and maintenance issues.
Molefe has served as Transnet CEO since 2011. He has also been an executive director at Telkom, CEO of the PIC between 2003 and 2010, and he joins us now.
Brian, thanks for your time this evening.
BRIAN MOLEFE: Good evening. Thanks you for having me.
SIKI MGABADELI: And when was the call made to ask you to step in, and what was your immediate reaction?
BRIAN MOLEFE: Well, when I was told some time this week I was in shock, but I’m over it now.
SIKI MGABADELI: Good. So how do you feel now? Do you feel ready to step in?
BRIAN MOLEFE: Yes, I feel that Eskom has actually a very good team of executive managers. We will sit together and work out how to resolve this problem. They have been working very hard at these issues and I’ll just see what it is that I can assist with.
SIKI MGABADELI: Have you had any time to meet with them?
BRIAN MOLEFE: Tomorrow morning.
SIKI MGABADELI: I know our interaction with Eskom has mostly been through the headlines and seeing the crisis and the problems there developing and playing themselves out. But do you know what your immediate priorities should be?
BRIAN MOLEFE: Well, the load-shedding. We have to make it a matter of priority. And secondly to go back to generating in a sustainable way, so that South Africa has electricity on daily basis. Then in the long term to reduce our reliance on coal, to find alternative sources of energy.
SIKI MGABADELI: What do you think in your current arsenal of skills you would be bringing into Eskom?
BRIAN MOLEFE: Team building. What we need at Eskom – I won’t be able to do that job on my own. We need to build a team, and the team is already there. We are not getting new chiefs from outside or anything like that. The team is already there. Just deal with the team dynamics and work together with the team to resolve the problems.
SIKI MGABADELI: Are you not concerned, though, that you are walking into a bit of a leadership vacuum? You’ve got a CEO who has been suspended, three senior executives suspended, and a chairman who has stepped down.
BRIAN MOLEFE: No, you have about 12 other people who are still in place, and who are equally committed to the company. I think that the issues of the CEO and suspended people will be resolved in a short space of time.
SIKI MGABADELI: How closely are you going to work with the shareholder, the Department of Public Enterprises?
BRIAN MOLEFE: We work very well. The shareholder is my shareholder at Transnet, and so we have very cordial, very good working relations with the officials of the department as well as with the minister and the deputy minister.
SIKI MGABADELI: Do you know how long you are going to be acting for?
BRIAN MOLEFE: I think for now for about three months and then we’ll take it from there.
SIKI MGABADELI: And Transnet itself? Is it in a space where you can hand it over to somebody else?
BRIAN MOLEFE: Transnet is. There are quite a number of people who are ready and willing and able to take it over, and I think that the minister will actually make an announcement on Monday.
SIKI MGABADELI: On who’s going to be stepping into your shoes?
BRIAN MOLEFE: On who is going to be acting, because I am still the group chief executive of Transnet. I’m just seconded to Eskom.
SIKI MGABADELI: Thanks for your time today, Brian Molefe.
Moneyweb
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