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The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Tshwane welcomes the response by the City of Tshwane that a transactional advisor will be appointed after we raised concerns that plans to reactivate the city’s mothballed power stations had stalled.

On 11 February we pointed to the city’s failure to appoint a transactional advisor to complete the next step of the energy independence plan devised under my mayorship.

The transactional advisor is needed to finalise a request for proposals, so as to get the best possible offer from the private sector.

The EFF, a member of the ANC-led coalition in Tshwane, has been opposed to this plan from the start.

The EFF leader in Tshwane, Obakeng Ramabodu, a member of the mayoral committee, had also made statements in council to the effect that the city rejected any private concession on the power stations.

But in an interview with the Rekord newspaper, city spokesperson Lindela Mashego said that the transactional advisor will still be appointed. Mashego also confirmed that the model would be based on a 40 year lease, as had been agreed by the municipal council at the end of 2023.

The Tshwane Economic Development Agency (TEDA) would drive the initiative in line the review of TEDA’s mandate undertaken last year.

The DA welcomes these comments, and we will be tracking the progress of making the city more independent of Eskom.

Issued by Ald Cilliers Brink - DA Tshwane Caucus Leader