The chairperson of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Public Enterprises, Khaya Magaxa, has welcomed the announcement of the new 13-member Eskom Board.

The newly constituted board was on Friday announced by Public Enterprises Minister, Pravin Gordhan.

The appointments come amid the latest three-week load shedding bout to have hit the parastatal.

The board consists of Mpho Makwana (Chair), Dr Busisiwe Vilakazi, Mteto Nyati, Lwazi Gogwana, Dr Tshakani Mthombeni, Leslie Mkhabela, Fathima Gany, Ayanda Mofaleka, Claudelle von Eck, Tryphosa Romano, Bheki Ntshalintshali, and Clive le Roux.

In a statement, Magaxa said the committee hoped that the new board – which boasts skills and rich knowledge from the fields of engineering, accounting and energy policy – will, among other things, “boost the operational capacity and improve the performance of the power utility”.

He said board comes at a time when the power utility is looking for new insight and innovation.

“One of the expectations that we have as the committee is that the new board should be thinking about creative ways of improving the available Eskom energy by addressing the functioning of power stations that are experiencing increased breakdowns, resulting in blackouts,” said Magaxa.

He called on the board to assist by facilitating the restoration of harmonious working relations between management and organised labour at Koeberg nuclear power station.

“We urge you to persuade these very important players at Koeberg to find each other to ensure that the nuclear station always plays its role of the provision of power,” said Magaxa.

Source: South African Government News Agency