For Creamer Media in Johannesburg, I’m Lumkile Nkomfe.

Making headlines: Speakers outline Eskom’s transition approach; National Treasury reports malware attack on one of its websites; And, Rwandan President Kagame appoints new Prime Minister

Speakers outline Eskom’s transition approach

State-owned power utility Eskom has adopted a “forward-looking” strategy that is designed to tackle the current pressing challenges in the electricity sector, while positioning the entity as a resilient and competitive energy leader, Eskom strategy and sustainability group executive Nontokozo Hadebe outlined during an address at the 2025 Coal and Energy Transition Day.

She pointed out that Eskom was systematically improving disciplined execution of maintenance, and had recently returned about 794 MW of capacity to service, and reduced loadshedding, thereby improving energy availability and security in the country.

Hadebe noted that, despite some delays, a further three units were expected to return to service by the end of the current financial year.

She informed that, with the National Transmission Company South Africa now unbundled, Eskom’s focus was shifting to the Generation and Distribution entities; however, this would require legislative intervention to support the transition. The NTCSA started trading on July 1, 2024, Hadebe highlighted.

She emphasised that transitioning was a key priority for Eskom, as the utility optimised the current coal fleet and accelerated clean energy. She said it was actively strengthening and expanding its grid and distribution network to support access to the grid.

National Treasury reports malware attack on one of its websites

The National Treasury has reported that it has been subject to a malware attack. The malware was detected on its Infrastructure Reporting Model website, which was its system for online infrastructure reporting and monitoring.

The IRM servers have been isolated to maintain National Treasury systems security, as well as to be able to evaluate the scale of the breach. Wider National Treasury systems and websites continued to operate normally, with no disruptions.

National Treasury stated that considering recent media reports since Sunday regarding security incidents affecting Microsoft platforms in the US, Treasury had requested Microsoft’s assistance in identifying and addressing any potential vulnerabilities within its information and communications technology environment.

On an average day, Treasury's ICT team detect and block about 5 800 cybersecurity threats to its systems. Threats concerned included attempted malware infections, spam attacks, and phishing attempts.

Treasury's digital activities are on a considerable scale. On a typical day, its ICT department processed more than 200 000 emails and, through its websites, facilitated more than 400 000 user connections.

And, Rwandan President Kagame appoints new Prime Minister

Rwandan President Paul Kagame has replaced the country's Prime Minister, naming the deputy governor of the central bank to the role without explaining the decision.

The appointment of Justin Nsengiyumva, a former British government worker who holds a PhD in economics from the University of Leicester, was announced by the office of the government spokesperson in a post on X last night.

The post did not say why the incumbent, Edouard Ngirente, was dropped. Ngirente, who had been Prime Minister since 2017, thanked Kagame on X, but did not elaborate on the reasons for his departure.

In Rwanda, the Prime Minister is the head of government and is responsible for the running of the government's day-to-day operations.

Rwanda last held elections in 2024 when Kagame was re-elected with 99.18% of the vote, extending his near quarter-century in office.

That’s a roundup of news making headlines today

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