Covid Cases Rise as Rioting Takes its Toll, Economist Warns of Eskom Cash Crunch

LOCAL NEWS

• KZN premier says the region has entered its third wave with cases surging as a result of social unrest and rioting in July.
  • SA recorded 10,139 cases overnight with KZN and the western cape contributing 2,600 and 2,900 cases respectively. Western Cape warns hospitals are coming under severe pressure and filling up fast
• Local Economist warns the recent explosion at Eskom's Medupi plant could cause a cash crunch for the company with costs estimates at R1.5-2bn to fix unit 4 2hcih will be down for 2 years.
  • The prolonged closure will see Eskom relying more on expensive diesel-powered gas turbines (emergency reserves) which will amplify the cash crunch and may eventually result in higher electricity tariffs.
  • Additionally, Eskom gave warnings yesterday that the grid was under severe pressure, boosting the risk of load-shedding in the near-term
• Public hearings into the Turkish power ship contract will launch this week, with energy regulator Nersa looking for input around the multi-year contracts to procure 2,000MW of emergency power.
  • bulk of the contracted power is associated with three ship projects, which will see floating storage and regasification units parked in South African ports for as long as 20 years.
  • Although the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy appears to be going out of its way to ensure they happen, these projects are being challenged on environmental grounds.
  • A 'non-negotiable' deadline for the project to be cleared has now been extended