By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
State owned power utility Eskom has welcomed the latest upgrade by Standard and Poor’s (S&P) Global, which raised its long-term global-scale foreign and local currency ratings from stable to positive.
The ratings agency also affirmed Eskom’s ‘B’ issue rating on the group’s senior unsecured debt and the ‘BB-‘ foreign currency issue ratings on the government-guaranteed debt.
Further, Eskom’s South Africa national scale issuer credit rating was upgraded to ‘zaBBB+’ from ‘zaBBB’, with the short-term national scale rating of ‘zaA-2’ reaffirmed, Eskom said in a statement.
This decision reflects S&P Global’s confidence in the impact of the R254-billion financial support package introduced through the Eskom Debt Relief Act signed in 2023.
This package ensures Eskom can meet its debt servicing and repayment commitments through 2026, thereby significantly reducing liquidity risks and bolstering the company’s financial stability, it said.
Our success in improving generation performance and achieving more than R16-billion in diesel savings highlights the efficiency gains we are driving. Sustaining this momentum will support Eskom’s path to profitability and reduce our reliance on fiscal support in the future,” said Eskom CE Dan Marokane.
This upgrade is a clear indicator of the progress we are making in strengthening Eskom’s financial and operational foundation. It sends a positive message to investors and stakeholders, reinforcing trust in our ability to deliver energy security while driving long-term sustainability,” he added.
This credit rating upgrade underscores the progress made in restoring Eskom’s financial health and operational reliability. Eskom is committed to delivering on its mandate to power South Africa’s economic future while creating value for all stakeholders, he emphasized.
Meanwhile Eskom said it has successfully completed its prepaid meter Key Revision Number (KRN) rollover project, but has set a new deadline of December 13 to assist paying customers who are still experiencing challenges and an estimated 1.7-million zero buyers that are yet to complete the upgrade.
As of November 24, about 5.5-million customers, including about 400 000 zero buyers who have now become paying customers, have successfully rolled over and are transacting on KRN 2.
The utility says it is observing a decrease in the zero buyer numbers to about 1.7-million from the previous 12-month rolling average of 2.1-million.
Eskom is doing everything that is practically possible to make users of electricity pay for it in the interest of those who already pay for electricity, maintain the sustainability of Eskom to drive the economic growth of South Africa and reduce our burden on the taxpayer,” explained Marokane.
The utility is urging zero buyers who bought electricity before the deadline but have a meter-related matter such as a lost, bypassed or tampered meter, to visit one of Eskom centres by December 13.