Eskom treasurer heads for the door

Eskom group treasurer Andre Pillay resigned and will leave the embattled state power utility at the end of August, it announced on Monday.

Pillay’s resignation marks yet another exit of a senior executive as the utility struggles with a financial and operational crisis. Eskom group CEO Phakamani Hadebe said he will leave his post at the end of July due to health concerns related to the high-stress job.

In a statement, Eskom thanked Pillay for his dedication and contribution towards managing Eskom’s liquidity through some of the most challenging times. No reasons were provided for his departure.

Pillay leaves after eight years at Eskom. He first came into the organisation in 2011 as a senior manager at Eskom treasury and in 2016 he was promoted to group treasurer, where he enabled the execution of Eskom’s funding programme.

WE HAVE REQUESTED THAT ANDRE REMAIN IN THE POSITION FOR THE NEXT TWO MONTHS

“We are cognisant of how critical the group treasurer role is for Eskom and have requested that Andre remain in the position for the next two months to ensure a seamless transition and business continuity through the handover process,” Eskom CFO Calib Cassim said.

“Andre’s replacement will be announced in due course.

“We believe that treasury operations will continue with ease with the support of the current treasury leadership.”

President Cyril Ramaphosa said during his state of the nation address in June that Eskom would receive a portion of the R230bn that was promised at the time of the budget sooner than had been expected.

This is to alleviate its financial crisis and enable it to finalise its annual financial statements. Without additional support it is not a going concern. In February, Ramaphosa announced Eskom would be split into three parts.