R55-billion loss for Eskom

Eskom recorded an after-tax loss of R55 billion in its previous financial year, which ran from April 2023 to March 2024.
The amount is over double the R26.1 billion loss Eskom reported in its 2023 financial year.
However, the power utility highlighted that this loss included the impact of the separation of the power utility’s transmission division into a separate company — the National Transmission Company of South Africa (NTCSA).
The unbundling means that the NTSCA could no longer be recognised as a tax asset on Eskom’s balance sheet.
With the NTCSA estimated to be worth R36.6 billion, Eskom’s income tax figure turned from a positive R8.5 billion to a negative of R29.5 billion.
Eskom chief financial officer Calib Cassim explained that the NTSCA was the only profitable entity, but it had to be removed from Eskom’s balance sheet because it wouldn’t form part of the utility’s future revenue streams.
Eskom’s loss before tax was R25.5 billion, an improvement of 26% from the R34.6 billion in the previous year.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation also increased 26% from R34.6 billion to R43.4 billion.
The company’s liquidity position has also improved significantly. However, that is largely due to a government bailout of R76 billion, which covered most of Eskom’s debt servicing obligations.
Eskom’s electricity sales declined by 3%, but a hefty 18.65% tariff increase boosted revenue from R259.5 billion to R295.8 billion, a 14% improvement.
Eskom estimated the record of 329 days of load-shedding during the period cost the utility another R22 billion in revenue.
The power utility’s primary energy costs also increased 11% from R156.8 billion to R173.7 billion, despite a 2% overall decrease in production.
Eskom explained that this was primarily due to the regular use of expensive emergency power generation in the form of diesel-powered open-cycle gas turbines.
The power utility said that its expenditure on OCGTs increased from R29.6 billion to R33.9 billion.
The screenshots below from Eskom’s annual results presentation show the key highlights of its financial performance and income statement in the previous fiscal year ending March 2024.


R10-billion profit predicted for 2025
Eskom chief executive officer Dan Marokane believes that the power utility can return to profitability in the 2025 financial year due to a reduction in diesel usage and a radical drop in power cuts, increasing sales.
It should be noted that Marokane only joined the power utility in the current financial year. During most of the 2024 financial year, Eskom chief financial officer Calib Cassim was acting as interim CEO.
Marokane gave a quick overview of Eskom’s improved performance in the first six months of its 2025 financial year, running from 1 April 2024 to 30 September 2024.
Eskom has not yet implemented load-shedding in its current financial year, with 267 days without any of the scheduled power cuts.
Over just the first half of its previous financial year, Eskom had implemented 186 days of load-shedding.
Marokane said this had resulted in diesel usage reducing by R11.9 billion year-on-year by September 2024. As of Friday, 13 December 2024, that saving had increased to R16.46 billion.
Eskom said that a 4% year-on-year increase in sales — coupled with a 12.74% tariff hike — had also resulted in its net profit after tax increasing significantly. It forecasted that profit after tax will be over R10 billion in the 2025 financial year.
Marokane said although good progress has been made, Eskom will focus on several key areas to ensure the recovery is sustained, namely:
- Bringing 2,500MW of generation online by March 2025 through the return of Koeberg Unit 2 and Medupi Unit 4, as well as the synchronisation of Kusile Unit 6
- Using R250 billion in government debt relief to reduce debt levels
- Addressing municipal debt with structural reforms in collaboration with the government
- Unbundling its distribution division into the National Energy Distribution Company South Africa
- Executing its capital projects, including the Transmission Development Plan
- Focussing on socio-economic initiatives in communities impacted by the planned shutdown of coal power stations