There is no question that President Ramaphosa’s endorsement of the Phase I report of the Eskom Restructuring Task Team (ERTT) is a key milestone in the ongoing reform of South Africa’s electricity sector.
The report focused on developing a high-level proposal to establish an independent Transmission System Operator (TSO). It was guided by both the amended Electricity Regulation Act, which includes a five-year timeframe from 2025 for the creation of the TSO, and the ERTT’s terms of reference.
Crucially, the terms of reference included the following: developing a detailed proposal and implementation plan for establishing an independent, State-owned TSO separate from Eskom that will assume ownership and control of transmission assets, operate the electricity market, enable transmission investment at scale, and provide non-discriminatory access to the grid.
The clause took its lead from Ramaphosa’s February State of the Nation Address, when he insisted that the TSO should have ownership and control of transmission assets; a rebuke of an earlier Eskom plan that envisaged the retention of the assets by an Eskom Holdings subsidiary.
Amid Eskom’s ongoing misgivings about the transfer, Ramaphosa’s endorsement of the Phase I report is significant.
