State-owned electricity producer Eskom has unveiled details of a R321.72-billion capital expenditure (capex) plan for the coming five years, which includes plans for a material rise in grid-related investment, alongside new renewables and gas-to-power projects.

In a presentation of its corporate plan to the Portfolio Committee on Electricity and Energy, Eskom indicated that R133-billion, or 41.2%, of its capital budget for the 2026 to 2030 financial years would be spent by the National Transmission Company (NTCSA).

The NTCSA is a legally separated division of Eskom Holdings, with its own board and executive team, and is responsible for implementing the Transmission Development Plan, which entails the addition of 14 000 km of new powerlines and associated substation infrastructure by 2035.

The capex allocation to NTCSA, Eskom showed, would ramp up from only R9.96-billion in the current financial year to R38.72-billion in the 2030 financial year.

The capex allocation to NTCSA between financial years 2027 and 2030 would represent an increase of five times when compared with that which was spent in the 2025 financial year, Eskom added.

The corporate plan indicated that about 6 600 km of powerlines and 67 000 MVA of transformer capacity would be constructed by 2030.

The figure is higher than the 5 044 km communicated by the Department of Electricity and Energy to the same committee earlier in the week, with the discrepancy explained by differences in timeframes being used for the shareholder compact as compared with the corporate plan being presented.

Meeting the target would require a significant acceleration against prevailing yearly build rates, with only 423 km of new powerlines expected to be built in the current financial year.

Government is also aiming to supplement NTCSA’s capex with private grid investment, with a pre-commercial process currently under way ahead of the tender, in November, for a first phase of an Independent Transmission Project procurement programme, comprising 1 164 km across seven corridors.

STAND-ALONE RENEWABLES UNIT

Eskom’s generation business was still projected to absorb the largest single portion of the five-year capex budget, however, with R140-billion allocated, representing 43.37%, while R44-billion had been allocated to the distribution unit, which was also in the process of being legally separated.

About R18.50-billion of the generation unit’s capex would be allocated for renewables and gas-to-power, with Eskom in the process of establishing a stand-alone renewables business, while also pursuing a gas-to-power project for Richards Bay, in KwaZulu-Natal.

Addressing the committee from the UK where he was attending an international energy gathering, Eskom CEO Dan Marokane reiterated to lawmakers that the group intended building renewables projects, in partnership with private investors, “on our land, with our people”.

He added that Eskom had decided that a separate entity was required, owing to the partnership model being pursued, which would involve leveraging the balance sheets of its private partners.