State-owned electricity producer Eskom announced in the early hours of Tuesday morning that Zola Tsotsi had agreed to step down as a director and chairperson of the board and that Dr Ben Ngubane had been appointed acting chairperson.

In a statement the utility indicated that the move, which was taken after a presentation made by Tsotsi and a “constructive” discussion, was in the “interest of the company and the country and was done in order to allow the board to focus on the core issues facing Eskom”.
 
“This step, the board believes, will ensure that Eskom can focus on the challenges facing it and sets the company on a new path to regain the confidence of all stakeholders concerned in ensuring the important work of meeting the energy needs of the country,” the statement read.

The board made no reference to the status of the four executive directors, including CEO Tshediso Matona, who were suspended on March 11 in order for the board to conduct an unfettered inquiry into the status of the utility.

The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), which had been a vocal opponent of Tsotsi ever since the executive suspensions, said it hoped his resignation would bring stability to Eskom.

"We welcome the resignation . . . It has been long overdue. The sooner we get stability in so far as the executive is concerned the better," NUM general secretary Frans Baleni said in a statement, adding that the board needed to return to its oversight role.

Some eyebrows were raised, however, about the appointment of Ngubane as acting chairperson, owing to what was described as his unsuccessful stint as chairperson of the South African Broadcasting Corporation. Ngubane is also a former Minister of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology and Ambassador to Japan.