South Africa’s Eskom Revamps Its Strategy as Monopoly Fades

South Africa’s state power utility Eskom is pivoting its strategy as it prepares to unbundle and relinquish its electricity monopoly. CEO Dan Marokane stated the company has abandoned the notion of doing everything itself, embracing President Cyril Ramaphosa’s irreversible market reforms. While Eskom still provides 85% to 90% of the country's electricity, it faces new competition from independent generators and distributors.

To offset declining market share, the utility is targeting new revenue streams including supplying power to data centers, bitcoin miners, and electric vehicles. It is also expanding renewable energy generation and exporting bulk power to neighboring countries like Zambia and the Congo. This strategic shift comes as South Africa recovers from years of rolling blackouts caused by mismanagement under former President Jacob Zuma.

The utility currently has three to five gigawatts of excess generating capacity, partly due to businesses installing their own solar panels and battery storage.