For a moment when I saw 66GW of renewables I got excited…
I think that ship is getting ready to sail … as in it is coming, big Business and then the rest of us.
Personally, I installed solar for an ROI … as a side benefit, LS was mitigated.
Ha ha, 66GW? That’s almost the UK’s entire installed capacity 
Good LS is back … I had two so far. In a weird way, that is a form of relief.
Iro the “other news” I’ve been wondering about:
And …
Didn’t they do that ages ago already? I believe when the corruption cameout, ABB refunded the money and fired the people involved almost immediately. Unlike certain other institutions of course…
Ok. So it was these wage negotiations that required stage 4 (and more) load shedding. This does make sense. So does that mean load shedding is over for the next 3 years and all they have to do is find the money for the 7% pa increase?
Unfortunately I think you have a point there… I didnt even think of that. I’m so glad I’m mostly free of Eskom at home.
This, to me, is the closest analog to our power station fiasco, from Europe. Complete with an instance of someone being poisoned. So hilarious was the comedy of errors, that some German developers built a game called Airport construction manager where you have to build an airport using the maximum amount of public money. Apparently, it was impossible to finish the game.
Now that you mention it … it is old news.
Eish, is this now the cycle of repeating old news stories as new to make us think it is going better?
Well, one of three possibilities. Either the minister couldn’t remember any other names, or there aren’t any other companies (yet, but he wanted to pad the list of interventions), or it is politically problematic to say “Econ oil”.
Fact is, ABB itself wasn’t really involved in the “malfeasance”. Some of their employees, a certain Mohammed Mooidheen and Vernon Pillay, misled ABB into appointing Impulse International as subcontractor, from which they benefited. When the parent company found out, they fired the employees repaid 1.577 billion, and they disclosed this irregularity to Eskom voluntarily too.
I mean, I’m not an ABB groupie (okay, maybe a little, they do make good stuff), but this is a little misleading. If ABB is all they’ve “got” so far, a case actually going back to last year this time, things aren’t going well on that front at all.
In other news, not Eskom related, but a direct blin on the sheer ineptitude of this government…
Holy smokes we are so fooked with Eskom with this bunch of airheads in charge.
Forget Eskom, this is all about Russia and them catching some shine.
This seems to be getting traction too …
I’m going to lean somewhat the other way on that. Africa has always seen itself as somewhat of a peace maker. Blessed are the peace makers.
But, they also always seem somewhat limp-wristed in their attempts. Unwilling to call a spade a spade. The president was quite correct in telling Putin: Your war is affecting our continent. Our food prices are skyrocketing!
But they always seem to take this “middle of the road let’s negotiate” tactic. Oh come-on Mr. Tsvangirai, we know you won that election, but let’s negotiate!
There are times when “meeting in the middle” is the wrong answer. When you meet in the middle, the party making the more outrageous claims win. It is similar to low-balling. Africa’s willingness to “listen” to Putin may be well intended, but I think it makes them look weak.
Jinne, I’m not sure I can even try and “get that” … notwithstanding the West’s atrocities, when trying to speak of Russia/Putin in any other way than fierce rebuke, is a very bitter pill to try and swallow.
The West has made some seriously bad moves, atrocities too, but the level that Russia can go to with such ease … nope, cannot fathom anyone who even tries to make sense of that.
That is from me who at one point thought Putin may just be the one to call the West out. I’m not in favor of the USA either. But when one has to compare evils, Africa has a very harsh history itself, of despots, violence, and atrocities. Makes one wonder … “takes one to know one”?
The sheer impunity towards human life, with no controls whatsoever in place, not even after the event … allowing the deepest darkest side of human nature to flourish, scares the dinges out of me.
Maybe, but two wrong’s don’t make a right. It’s a bit like the playground bully laying claims to half your marbles, and when you object, he points out that you stole a sandwich from his lunchbox last week.
That’s like every religious debate where someone enters “The crusades” as an argument. That was a series of wars (not just one) spanning 200 years, not all for the same reasons… but let’s assume for the sake of argument that they were bad, how does that in any way justify anything now? 
I’m not saying that … I’m saying, when you look at the facts today of what Russia is doing, how they are doing it, what they allow, their impunity, using verified reports, then it is wrong on so many levels, and that is with history we have already lived, learned about, since WW1 …
There is no sugarcoating it, debating around that. It is wrong.
Putin is a despot. the atrocities done in his name will go down in the history books.
Finish en klaar.
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For me, one has to speak as equals. You are not a child petitioning a parent to reconcile with an estranged spouse (or at least, call back the laywers and end the way, by analogy). Africa ought to act like an equal:
Mr Putin, we have a long shared history, and we will always be thankful for the support Russia gave South Africa in the past, expecially in the struggle years. But this path you have taken now is causing us all hurt. Africa is being hurt by this war, and that isn’t really fair to us. It isn’t fair towards the Russian soldiers, and it isn’t fair towards Ukranian families who had nothing to do with this. As a brother we ask kindly, but as an equal we insist that this ends. Whatever you need to do Mr. Putin, ends this war!
Well, that’s how I would write that speech.
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I’m just very relieved that NATO has used immense restraint.
Back to Eskom … if we look at the international fiasco of THIS Gov with Russia, it makes me sick to my stomach on Eskom back here, with “them” in charge, and the potential implications of international moves made on SA, that can cause restrictions of parts and the rest, even sanctions.
That is with the international community that has supported the ANC in its struggle.
What a mess.
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I would be a bit more specific. His actions to date don’t seem very rational and he has access to nukes. 
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Yeah nukes … I think any despot has a point where their “supporters” will eliminate them, the nuke option is just such a point of no return.
That is If the nukes still work …
Personally, I never thought the nuclear option was a “real” threat. It is too “final”. Even for a despot.
For a sane despot, certainly. However, I share your opinion that it doesn’t seem likely, and my comment was somewhat tongue-in-the-cheek.
The whole invasion of Ukraine just doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, but I admit I’m not too clued up about the backstory to all this.
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