Westinghouse Electric South Africa had launched an expedited review application to challenge the award by Eskom of a contract to replace steam generators at Koeberg nuclear plant to French rival Areva, the company said yesterday.
This sets the stage for a protracted legal battle, which many believe Eskom can ill afford in light of the woes it is facing in supplying electricity to the economy, which is performing below par.
Westinghouse said Judge Roland Sutherland, the deputy judge president of the Gauteng High Court sitting in Johannesburg, who granted the original application, had appointed Judge Thokozile Masipa on September 17 to case manage Westinghouse’s review application, with a view to an expedited hearing of the application. Judge Masipa presided over the trial of Oscar Pistorius.
A pretrial conference is held to expedite disposition of a case and help the court establish managerial control over the case.
Westinghouse said earlier this month it was suspending an application for an interdict to stop the contract, while it pressed for documents related to the deal from Eskom.
Eskom awarded Areva the R4.2 billion contract last month to provide six steam generators for Koeberg.
“Westinghouse Electric Company intends to continue pursuing its challenge of Eskom’s decision to award a tender for the replacement of steam generators at the Koeberg nuclear power plant,” Westinghouse said.
“Based on documentation which Eskom has provided to date, Westinghouse maintains its stance that Eskom’s decision was flawed on various levels and should be set aside by the court.”
Westinghouse also said it would continue “to pursue its legal rights in an attempt to secure key outstanding documents from Eskom, which it has failed to provide”.
Matshela Koko, Eskom’s acting group executive for technology and commercial, said yesterday: “Should Westinghouse be granted a legal review, the courts will confirm that Eskom has acted within the prescribed procedures throughout the process.”
Eskom has said it was not opposed to giving Westinghouse documents, but did not want to hand over any commercially sensitive information. It said it had full confidence in the process and the competence of the individuals involved.
Johan Muller, the programme manager for energy and the environment at Frost & Sullivan, said the DA’s request for acting Eskom chief executive Colin Matjila to reveal all the documents on the tender might be a double-edged sword.
On the positive side, if no irregularities or corrupt activities were found, it would do wonders to confirm the stability and fairness of Eskom’s procurement processes – and the broader public sector image sent to global investors.
However, if the matter involved corrupt activities, then it would be another massive nail in the nail-ridden coffin of Eskom, Muller said.
“In the context of recent longer-term nuclear build decisions… potentially totalling up to a seventh of… annual GDP [gross domestic product], an irregularity of this scale will provide ammunition for all parties against nuclear implementation.” – Additional reporting by Reuters