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Eskom has postponed outgoing CEO André de Ruyter's planned briefing on Monday evening due to an emergency meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa.

"Unfortunately Eskom has had to postpone this afternoon’s media briefing due to emergency engagements with the President," spokesperson Sikonathi Mantshantsha said in a statement.

"While we aim to hold the media briefing as soon as possible, the date and time can only be confirmed once meetings with the President are concluded."

Ramaphosa cancelled his trip to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) gathering in Davos, Switzerland this week to deal with SA's energy crisis.

Ramaphosa is also expected to meet leaders of political parties represented in parliament and the National Energy Crisis Committee (NECCOM).

There were 200 days of loadshedding in 2022, and cuts every day this year, including an on-going six day stretch of Stage 6. Eskom is expected to announce an update on the loadshedding situation later on Monday.

Africa’s most industrialised economy faces a 45% chance of slipping into recession this year as South Africa’s electricity crisis deepens.

The probability of it happening in the coming 12 months increased from odds of 35% in November, around the start of the longest streak of consecutive daily power cuts. That’s according to the latest Bloomberg monthly survey of economists, conducted January 9 to 12, with 7 economists responding to a question about the chance of a recession.

The prediction comes as the country’s on-going energy crisis risks intensifying and dim global economic prospects threaten to further curb domestic output. The outlook for South Africa’s economy in 2023 “isn’t impressive,” Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said last week, citing electricity-supply constraints.

Eskom, the State-owned company that produces almost all of South Africa’s electricity, has for the past seven days subjected the country to record blackouts — as much as 12 hours a day — to protect the power grid from collapse as its aging, mostly coal-fired power stations fail.

It has already used up money for diesel supplies allocated to fuel auxiliary plants for the year through March and a unit at its nuclear station is shut down for a revamp, meaning any additional faults among its assets and infrastructure could move South Africa to its highest level of outages yet.

Sustained outages, known locally as loadshedding, at the current “extreme levels” are the most significant downside risk to the country’s economic growth prospects, the Bureau for Economic Research’s Tracey-Lee Solomon, Romano Harold and Hugo Pienaar said in note published on its website on Monday.

The economy is unlikely to grow by more than 0.3% quarter-on-quarter through 2023, according to Bloomberg’s survey. Economists see gross domestic product growth slowing to 1.2% this year from 2.3% in 2022.

While inflation is expected to ease, it’ll only be back near 4.5% — the midpoint of the central bank’s target range at which the monetary policy committee prefers to anchor price-growth expectations — in the fourth quarter, before accelerating again into 2024.

The South African Reserve Bank will probably extend its most aggressive monetary policy tightening in at least two decades, with the key interest rate rising to 7.5% by the end of the first quarter from 7% now. A gradual easing of borrowing cost will start in the fourth quarter, according to economists. The central bank will give its next decision on the benchmark rate on January 26.

The South Gauteng High Court has interdicted former president Jacob Zuma from pursuing a private prosecution against President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Ramaphosa launched an urgent interdict against Zuma's private prosecution after the former president accused him of being "an accessory after the fact" for failing to act against State prosecutor Advocate Billy Downer and journalist Karyn Maughan for allegedly leaking Zuma’s medical records.

A day before the start of the African National Congress's elective conference in December last year, Zuma issued summons for Ramaphosa to appear in court on January 19 for alleged violations of the NPA Act.

On Monday the court affirmed all of the President’s key contentions, namely on the jurisdiction of the court to hear the interdict application, and the urgency of the matter against a court appearance date based on a prima facie unlawful nolle prosequi.

This means that the President will not have to appear in a criminal court as an accused on Thursday, as had been initially scheduled.

The court further found in the President’s favour on the violation of rights to personal freedom based on a prima facie defective summons.

Ramaphosa welcomed the court ruling on Monday.

“The judgment confirms the position of the President that the private prosecution is motivated by the ulterior purpose based on spurious and unfolded charges, constitutes an abuse of private prosecution provisions and demonstrates flagrant disregard for the law,” said the Presidency.

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) is heading to the Constitutional Court to challenge the National Assembly's decision not to institute impeachment proceedings against President Cyril Ramaphosa.

The party will also ask the court to allow it to oppose Ramaphosa's application to review and set aside the report of the independent panel, which found that he had a prima facie case to answer.

In late November, the panel - which Parliament appointed - released the report, which contained a recommendation that the National Assembly should institute the impeachment proceedings Ramaphosa.

At first Ramaphosa considered resigning, but he decided to fight back and ask the Constitutional Court to review the report instead.

The pending court challenge, however, did not prevent the National Assembly from proceeding with a vote on whether or not impeachment proceedings should be instituted against Ramaphosa. With party discipline enforced, the ANC ensured that the vote went against impeachment.

In his application to the Constitutional Court, Ramaphosa accused the panel of relying on the "say-so" of former spy boss Arthur Fraser in determining the impeachment case against him. Ramaphosa insisted that he did nothing wrong in relation to a theft at his Limpopo game farm, Phala Phala.

The theft remained secret until Fraser laid charges in connection with it with the police, spawning a host of investigations, including the parliamentary Section 89 process.

As respondents, Ramaphosa only cited the three members of the panel, the former chief justice, Sandile Ngcobo; retired judge Thokozile Masipa; advocate Mahlape Sello, SC; Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and ATM leader Vuyolwethu Zungula, who brought the Section 89 motion.

But, in papers filed on 22 December, EFF deputy leader Floyd Shivambu argued that the party had a material interest because it was duty-bound to hold Ramaphosa to account, and that he still had many questions to answer on the Phala Phala saga.

In another application, which was filed this week, the EFF asked the apex court to review and set aside Mapisa-Nqakula's decision to have a vote on the report, to have it done by open ballot, and to declare it unconstitutional and invalid. They want the Section 89 process to start afresh.

Shivambu stated that he made the application with urgency and asked the court to hear it with Ramaphosa's application.

In December, the ATM also approached the Western Cape High Court in a bid to overturn the National Assembly's decision.

President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed great sadness at the news of the passing of struggle stalwart Dr Frene Ginwala.

The 90-year old member of the Order of Luthuli, is known to many for her role as the first democratic Speaker of the National Assembly between 1994 and 2004.

“Among the many roles she adopted in the course of a life she led to the full, we are duty-bound to recall her establishment of our democratic Parliament which exercised the task of undoing decades-old apartheid legislation and fashioning the legislative foundations of the free and democratic South Africa,” Ramaphosa said.

Democratic Alliance (DA) chief whip Siviwe Gwarube focused on Ginwala’s role in a Parliament that repealed many pieces of apartheid legislation and was one of the contributors to, and drafters of, the Constitution.

She said Ginwala’s legacy demonstrated what a strong and independent Parliament can do in bettering the lives of South Africans.

ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba added that Ginwala served the country with excellence as the first democratic Speaker and he pointed out that she commanded respect among Members of Parliament and South Africans during her time as a public servant.

“South Africa would do well to remember people like Dr Ginwala who led with dignity and integrity. Her exemplary dedication to serving her country,” he added.

The Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution (Casac) said Ginwala, who was an African National Congress (ANC) stalwart, was a great constitutionalist and champion for gender equality and rights for women.

Casac executive secretary Lawson Naidoo said she provided sage advice and unequivocal encouragement at the time of the council’s establishment in 2010.

He said Ginwala will be remembered as a lifelong activist for social justice, human rights and the rule of law and as a person who made an immense contribution to the struggle for freedom in South Africa.

As South Africa remains in the grips of Stage 6 loadshedding - with large electricity tariff hikes also now on the cards - Mineral Resources and Energy minister Gwede Mantashe claims the power crisis can be tackled within just six to 12 months.

"Eskom must do introspection: do we have the capacity to deal with the crisis? If not can we go out and look for that capacity. it will take us six to 12 months to solve this issue if we pay attention to that," he said in an interview with eNCA on Friday.

Mantashe's comments come just as the African National Congress, at its 55th National Conference, resolved to move certain State-owned entities back into their relevant portfolios. This would see Eskom moved out of Pravin Gordhan's Department of Public Enterprises and into Mantashe's department.

Mantashe has been openly critical of Eskom management and last month went so far to accuse the utility CEO and his team of "actively agitating for the overthrow of the State" in their failure to arrest loadshedding. Eskom CEO Andre De Ruyter has since tendered his resignation.

"In Eskom, we have 48 000MW connected to the grid but Eskom at best can give us 26 000MW. There's 22 000MW that is idling but connected, it is not decommissioned," Mantashe said.

"And if there was a focus on servicing and maintaining those megawatts, we wouldn't have loadshedding."

Mantashe said the rollout of government's renewables programme would then complement Eskom's generation capacity in the medium to long term, noting he is a "big believer" in a mixture of technologies because he knows the shortcomings of renewables.

"But in the immediate, we need our coal power station to generate optimally and to give us energy," he said.

Police have established a task team to investigate hits and attempted hits at the University of Fort Hare in the Eastern Cape.

Police said the "multi-disciplinary" team would "closely investigate the pattern of threats on the lives of the staff members".

During a visit to the university on Wednesday, police management said they were "intensifying their responses to recent violent and fatal attacks" that led to two deaths.

The visit was led by Police Minister Bheki Cele, State Security Deputy Minister Zizi Kodwa and national police commissioner General Fannie Masemola.

On Friday, an attempt was made on the life of the university's vice-chancellor, Professor Sakhela Buhlungu.

During the shooting outside Buhlungu's residence in Alice, his bodyguard, Mboneli Vesele, was killed. Buhlungu was unharmed and then moved to a safe location.

In May 2022, News24 reported that the university's fleet manager Peet Roets was shot dead near his house in Gonubie after leaving the university's Alice campus.

The task team appointed by the police would report directly to the office of the national police commissioner and was expected to commence its investigation into Vesele's murder, said police ministry spokesperson Lirandzu Themba.

The team would also investigate other alleged attempted hits on university staff and Roets' murder, she said. It will include detectives, forensic analysts and members of the Organised Crime and Crime Intelligence units.

Hawks members will also be part of the team.

Cele said: "it is quite clear that the local police are just not working fast enough in making arrests, and this newly established national team, through its work, must send a strong message to criminals that this government will not be threatened or shaken and will certainly not back down or co-govern with criminals."

Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor questioned the repeated breakdown of power plants and said they could be seen as an attack on the country.

The national power utility yesterday said there had been breakdowns at 11 units at eight power plants, meaning that South Africans are currently suffering power outages of as long as 10 hours a day.

It can be seen as “an oppositional act against South Africa.com,” she told business executives at an event on Thursday in Johannesburg.

Pandor’s comments echo those of Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe, who said last month that the utility, Eskom, appeared to be trying to overthrow the government.

The African National Congress (ANC) supports the central bank’s inflation-targeting policy and independence but would like an explicit mention of job creation in its remit, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said.

“The mandate of the South African Reserve Bank is to protect price stability in the interest of balanced and sustainable growth — implied in that is employment creation,” Godongwana, who is also a high-ranking member of the ANC, said Thursday in an interview in Johannesburg.

The central bank considers a range of issues including employment when implementing its constitutional mandate, and a direct reference to jobs won’t affect its operations, the minister said.

Godongwana’s comments come after President Cyril Ramaphosa on January 9 played down suggestions that an amendment to the mandate is imminent. Gwede Mantashe, the chairman of the ANC, said last week the party had agreed at its national conference to change the remit, a prospect that rattled investors worried that modifications would weaken the Reserve Bank’s independence and commitment to its inflation target.

“Price stability is sacrosanct,” Godongwana said, echoing Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago’s stance.

The central bank targets price growth in a band of 3% to 6% but its policy makers prefers to anchor inflation expectations close to the midpoint of that range.

It has doubled the benchmark rate since November 2021 to 7% in response to the worst global inflation shock in a generation. While the move drew criticism from some politicians and labor unions, its stance meant South Africa hasn’t experienced target misses of the scale experienced by some of its African and developed-market peers, and interest-rate hikes haven’t been as large as in other emerging markets.

The central bank, under Kganyago, maintains that the poor will be hit hardest if inflation isn’t kept in check and has repeatedly said that clearing obstacles that would bolster job creation and economic growth fall outside the scope of monetary policy.

Kganyago hasn’t formally raised the prospect of lowering South Africa’s inflation target range, Godongwana said.

The Reserve Bank is seen by investors, business and ratings companies as one of few pillars of institutional strength in an economy hollowed out by state graft during former President Jacob Zuma’s presidency. A 2017 proposal by now-suspended graft ombudsman Busisiwe Mkhwebane to change the bank’s official mandate and curtail its independence sparked concern before it was blocked by the courts.

The ANC’s previous attempts to make changes at the central bank have stalled and it won’t be able to effect a constitutional amendment on its own. It controls 58% of seats in the National Assembly, meaning it would need backing from opposition parties to push through any amendments.

South Africa has entered a critical phase of revamping its sole nuclear plant and needs it to run according to plan to avoid deepening power cuts that are already at a record and wreaking havoc on the economy.

The first of two units at the 1 940-megawatt Koeberg plant was shut down last month for refueling and the replacement of its steam generators, work that’s expected to be completed in early June, state power utility Eskom said in an emailed response to questions. The overhaul of the second unit is due to begin a few months later.

The head of Eskom’s nuclear unit quit last year, while the utility’s chief executive officer will leave end of March, raising concerns that the company won’t be able to stick to its schedule. The plant, which was originally set to operate until 2024, is one of Eskom’s most reliable, making its return to service key to meeting the nation’s energy needs.

Located on the Atlantic coast about 27 kilometers north of Cape Town, Koeberg’s first unit was completed in 1984 and the second the following year. The replacement of its generators was originally expected to be completed in 2021 but the project was dogged by delays. The revamp will extend its lifespan by two decades.

“Frequent delays in returning units from maintenance are a serious cause of concern,” said Fanele Mondi, chief executive officer of the Energy Intensive Users Group, whose members include Anglo American and Glencore and account for about 40% of the nation’s electricity consumption. The work on Koeberg “is one such maintenance event that has to be done on time” as any delay will have a significant impact on the performance of the power system, he said.

Africa’s most-industrialised economy has been battered by chronic energy shortages since 2008 because Eskom, which supplies more than 90% of its power, can’t meet demand from its old, poorly maintained and defective coal-fired plants. Its so-called energy availability factor, a measurement of how much capacity can be utilised, has dropped to below half, leaving the nation’s grid increasingly vulnerable to collapse unless blackouts are implemented.

Koeberg has been among the best performing of Eskom’s more than two dozen power stations — its one unit ran uninterrupted for more than 400 days prior to the December shutdown, while the other has been operating for over 100 days. It is also the cheapest to run, with its electricity costing far less than that produced from coal- and diesel-fired plants.

Even so, the need for the Koeberg overhaul — which has been planned since 2010 — has grown increasingly apparent. One of its units had to be taken off line in 2020 after a jellyfish clogged a water cooling system filter and the following year the plant dispatched its smallest amount of electricity in about two decades as it underwent scheduled maintenance. The revamp will reduce its output this year and in 2024, Eskom said.

Rising costs are a concern, given that Eskom has amassed R396.3billion of debt and isn’t generating enough electricity to cover its operating and interest costs.

The overall price tag of extending Koeberg’s lifespan was set at R20-billion in 2010, and Eskom said the final figure will be “very close” to that amount. Even so, it has made a R2.7-billion provision for possible compensation claims associated with the steam generation project that may be related to the delays. The contractors’ claims are still being processed, and any comment on the expected final amount would be speculation, the utility said.