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Molefe Seeletso
“Eskom has been investigating all suspicious contracts for the past few years, in order to recoup losses suffered as a result of criminal activities,” said Eskom’s CEO.
Eskom Chief Executive Officer (CEO) André de Ruyter has confirmed that the energy company had filed a claim for R3.8 billion against members of the Gupta family.
Speaking to the media on Friday, De Ruyter welcomed the announcement that ABB South Africa, formerly ASEA Brown Boveri, had reached an agreement with the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) to reimburse Eskom 1.5 billion rupees for an overpayment of a contract awarded per work. about the Kusile power station project.
ALSO READ: SIU investigates companies overpaid by R4bn in Eskom’s Kusile project
De Ruyter said the 1.5 billion rand would be used to reduce Eskom’s debt and debt service costs.
“Eskom has been investigating all suspicious contracts for the past several years, with a view to recovering losses suffered as a result of the criminal activities of its own employees who may have illegally colluded with some of the contractors. Eskom has already recovered R1.1 billion from McKinsey and R171 million from Deloitte Consulting, ”he said.
De Ruyter further confirmed that the energy company would file a lawsuit against the Gupta family in an effort to recover the money.
“Eskom has also filed a claim against members of the Gupta family, Gupta associates, former Eskom executives and a former government minister, as well as a R95 million claim against PricewaterhouseCoopers [PwC],” he said.
READ MORE: SIU Reveals How Four Eskom Officials Got R44.4m In Illegal Payments
The damages claim for Eskom relates to R3.8 billion in funds diverted from Eskom to allegedly help Gupta family members and their associates acquire the operations of Optimum Coal Holdings, which owned Optimum Coal Mining , which supplied coal to the Hendrina power plant.
Gupta-owned Tegeta Exploration and Resources had previously had a contract with Eskom, which left several power plants suffering supply shortages as a result of the cancellation.
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