Johannesburg, 14 February 2019 — In response to Eskom’s admission that Medupi and Kusile power stations continue to show a lack of reliability and are not contributing meaningfully to Eskom’s generating capacity, Greenpeace Africa’s Senior Climate and Energy Campaign Manager, Melita Steele, has said:
“Greenpeace Africa has been campaigning for the cancellation of Kusile for nearly a decade, arguing that the risks of construction far outweigh any potential benefits. It is clear that Eskom cannot continue throwing money that it doesn’t have into a black hole, and expecting the government to bail them out. We believe that the time has come to recognise that Medupi and Kusile are bad investments which are keeping us in the dark.
“Frustration and panic in South Africa are building to breaking point because of a rapidly sinking Eskom, vast tariff increases, and loadshedding. Even if Medupi and Kusile had been constructed efficiently, they would still be stranded assets given the risks of climate change. We cannot continue as we are, and Greenpeace Africa calls on Minister Pravin Gordhan to cancel the last two units of Kusile and shift investments into renewable energy before it really is too late”.
Media contact:
Chris Vlavianos: Greenpeace Africa Communications Officer, [email protected], 079 437 4208