By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Monde Bala has been appointed the interim chief executive officer of the National Transmission Company of South Africa (NTCSA) from 1 August 2025.
Bala has served as Group Executive: Eskom Distribution since 2019 and has held various senior leadership roles in his 27 years at Eskom.
The accelerated process of recruiting and appointing a permanent chief executive officer for the NTCSA is currently underway.
“Bala is a seasoned executive with solid experience of the power sector and the NTCSA Board is looking forward to working with him and the team as we drive our strategic deliverables. This leadership appointment ensures that we maintain and accelerate the execution of our strategy that will attract investment in the transmission grid through the delivery of an accelerated Transmission Development Plan (TDP), advancing operational unbundling activities as required by legislation and establishing a fair, competitive market for electricity, said Priscillah Mabelane, the NTCSA Board Chairperson.
Bala holds a BSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Cape Town and a Master of Engineering from the University of Witwatersrand.
Bala will be succeeding former Eskom GE for Transmission, Segomoco Scheppers, who will return to Eskom.
Scheppers was seconded to lead the transition and operationalise the NTCSA business in July 2024 due to his extensive experience in Eskom’s transmission division, having joined the power utility in 1993.
He was shortlisted for the permanent role of NTCSA CEO, but the group’s board said at the time that it had not yet identified the candidate to lead the business into its next phase.
“On behalf of the NTCSA Board and Exco, we sincerely thank Mr Scheppers for his remarkable contribution and unwavering commitment during the transition, as well as for his counsel and leadership at the NTCSA,” said Mabelane.
Eskom also has announced that Agnes Mlambo will become acting Group Executive for Distribution, effective 1 August 2025, taking over from Bala.
Mlambo will bring over 17 years’ experience in Eskom to the role.
She holds a master’s degree in business administration and a professional qualification as a Chartered Management Accountant and joined the group in 2008.
Eskom CEO Dan Marokane said that her experience will “significantly benefit” the distribution business as the group continues its recovery.
NTCSA owns and operates the country’s national transmission system, the world-class System Operator, the grid strengthening function, energy market services and the International Trader.