Power woes partly due to human error – government

South African power utility Eskom is struggling to keep its mainly coal-fired plants running due to coal shortages and poor maintenance, with 40% of breakdowns a result of human error, the Department of Public Enterprises said on Wednesday.

The department, which oversees embattled Eskom, also said in a presentation to parliament that Eskom was technically insolvent and would “cease to exist” at the current trajectory by April, unless it gets a cash injection.

Read: Splitting Eskom would protect its most strategic asset

President Cyril Ramaphosa said last week that the government would support Eskom’s balance sheet but that the scale of that support would be revealed only in a budget speech by the finance minister on February 20.