The Kusile power station
Power utility Eskom reports that nine people were arrested at the Kusile power station on September 7 for theft of coal and fraud.
Eight of the nine were weighbridge operators employed by Eskom Rotek Industries, with the ninth being a coal truck driver.
"A thorough investigation by the South African Police Service and an internal Eskom investigation supported by the Bidvest Protea Coin Investigation Team led to the arrest of the individuals, after information was received that coal haulers would bypass Kusile power station without offloading the ordered coal," Eskom explains.
It says investigations revealed that the weighbridge operators would process weighbridge transactions without the coal hauler having entered the power station to offload the coal. The Kusile power station would, however, be invoiced for the coal ordered but not received.
The suspects have been detained at the Phola police station.
Eskom expects more arrests to follow as the investigations continue.
“The arrest of these unscrupulous individuals is a significant step in our fight against crime in Eskom and the country, and we shall continue in our pursuit to ensure that the perpetrators face the full might of the law,” says Eskom acting GM for security Botse Sikhwitshi.