Jeremy’s weekly wrap: Koeberg defends safety as union slams Eskom Green

A week of high-stakes interviews on Moneyweb@Midday put South Africa’s most contested policy and infrastructure questions under scrutiny, from nuclear safety and the future ownership of the electricity system to the country’s animal-health crisis and the performance of a vital export gateway.

The interviews produced assurances, sharp ideological clashes and calls for government and state-owned companies to explain how their decisions will affect workers, farmers, exporters, and the wider economy.

At Koeberg, Eskom chief nuclear officer Velaphi Ntuli defended the plant’s safety record after four contamination events during a maintenance outage. Ntuli said no radioactive material escaped into the environment and communities were never at risk. Four workers were exposed to radiation levels of between 11 and 20 microsieverts, far below Eskom’s annual occupational limit of 20 000 microsieverts.

He disputed the suggestion that the events represented repeated safety failures, saying one involved a dosimeter alarm near a known radiation hotspot, while another followed a fault in a portable ventilation system. Ntuli said the events were rated zero on the International Nuclear Event Scale and were being reviewed by Eskom, the regulator, and international bodies.

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.

The future of Eskom came under attack from Mametlwe Sebei, president of the General Industries Workers Union of South Africa. Sebei argued that Eskom Green, the utility’s proposed renewable-energy company, amounted to privatisation by another name. He said private capital would demand profit from infrastructure and guarantees supported by the state.

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Sebei also challenged the cost of independent power procurement and warned that a profit-driven model could deepen energy poverty. His alternative was direct public investment in distributed renewable generation across homes, schools, hospitals, and public buildings.

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.

Agriculture Minister Willie Aucamp outlined a policy shift in the battle against foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). Government will allow approved farmers and farm managers to become authorised vaccinators, while private companies will be able to import and distribute vaccines without routing every consignment through Onderstepoort Biological Products.

Aucamp said about 13.5 million vaccine doses had entered the country and eight million animals had been vaccinated. He argued that the new system would remove the shortage of veterinarians as a major bottleneck but stopped short of apologising for losses suffered under the previous policy.

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You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.

Exporters Western Cape chair Terry Gale raised concern over Transnet’s proposed 25-year concession at the Port of Cape Town. Gale questioned why berths already operated by Fresh Produce Terminal were being targeted, instead of the underused multipurpose terminal at berths F and G.

He said upgrading that wind-protected facility could give fruit exporters an alternative when the main container terminal is shut by high winds, avoiding costly diversions to Gqeberha and Coega. Gale welcomed private investment, but said Transnet was pursuing the right reform at the wrong berths.

You can also listen to this podcast on iono.fm here.

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