Deal to revive ferrochrome smelters ready - minister

The move is aimed at saving thousands of jobs in the embattled power sector

- BANELE GININDZA

DR. KGOSIENTSHO Ramokgopa, Minister of Electricity and Energy, during a media briefing in Pretoria yesterday. I GCIS

MINISTER of Electricity and Energy Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, said yesterday that the government will announce next week an agreement on the amount of electricity needed to resuscitate ferro-chrome smelters in the country after Eskom's stable performance made it possible to leave “megawatts on the floor”.

This is a move aimed at reviving operations and saving thousands of jobs in the embattled sector.

The intervention follows an urgent call by the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa), after several smelter operators, including Glencore, issued Section 189 notices to retrench workers, citing unsustainably high electricity costs.

Ramokgopa said behind-the-scenes negotiations with industry and labour had now reached consensus on the additional megawatts to be allocated to smelters.

“The intervention is over and above the framework approved by Nersa on the negotiated pricing agreement (NPA). It needed significant concessions outside the parameters of the NPA,” Ramokgopa said.