The South African government reports that an acting Eskom CEO will be appointed “in due course” following the sudden departure of CEO André de Ruyter.

De Ruyter’s exit more than a month before his expected departure on March 31 was confirmed hours after the airing of an explosive television interview in which he offered startling details about high levels of criminality at the utility and also indicated that a high-ranking “politician” was directly involved in corruption at Eskom.

In a statement issued the day after the Eskom board announced that De Ruyter had been “released from his position with immediate effect”, the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) reported that Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan and the Eskom board were finalising the appointment of an Acting CEO and would make an announcement in due course.

“Government assures South Africans that there will be no leadership vacuum.

“The Eskom management team continues with daily operations and work to end loadshedding and secure our energy supply continues in earnest,” the statement reads.

It also “noted” public comments on social media that De Ruyter’s exit from Eskom was linked to the television interview.

“Government emphasises that there are formal channels, for all government entities, that exist between executives, boards, and Ministries, and this includes Eskom.

“Any concerns or challenges experienced by executives can and should be raised via the formal platforms to enable proper discussions and provide solutions,” GCIS stated.

In his interview with eNCA, De Ruyter said he had raised his concerns about “entrenched” criminality and corruption directly with a Minister, who he did not identify, indicating that Eskom had identified four criminal syndicates that had infiltrated its coal value chain.

He estimated there to be ongoing theft amounting to about R1-billion a month relating mostly to coal and fuel oil.

De Ruyter also revealed that he had reported to a Minister that a senior politician was actively involved and that the response of the Minister had been to turn to a senior official and say: “I guess it was inevitable that it would come out”.