SCORE: B

Kgosientsho Ramokgopa has made notable progress in addressing power cuts and keeping load-shedding at bay for more than six months. His ability to do this was initially doubted by many, who argued that it would be impossible to stabilise Eskom which had made a loss of over R20 billion a year. But, under his leadership, the return of key power stations such as Kusile, the extension of the Koeberg nuclear power station’s licence for another 20 years and efforts to integrate renewable energy sources have significantly reduced load-shedding. Initiatives such as demand-side management through Eskom’s distribution arm, the expansion of rooftop solar and migrating meters to prepaid to reduce illegal connections have alleviated pressure on the power grid. But ongoing obstacles — such as grid infrastructure bottlenecks caused by the slow expansion of transmission lines — have hindered the pace of transformation, because networks struggle to accommodate the anticipated growth in renewable energy capacity. The delayed release of the Integrated Resource Plan, despite promises of its completion this year, and regulatory complexities have also cast doubt on the country’s policy roadmap. Despite these problems, Ramokgopa’s achievements mark substantial progress toward energy stability.