The Minister of Finance of South Africa presented his 2023 budget on Wednesday 22 February to parliamentarians meeting in Cape Town. Indeed, faced with the unprecedented electricity crisis, the South African State wants to rescue the national company Eskom.

The public power giant Eskom is on the verge of collapse and represents a risk for the country. According to the Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, an agreement is proposed to alleviate Eskom's debt to the tune of 254 billion rand, or 13 billion euros. Indeed, to protect public funds, this agreement is accompanied by very strict conditions, including the obligation for the company to concentrate on maintaining its existing fleet of power plants, in order to increase the quantity of electricity available.

Noted that the rescue of Eskom is not without consequences for the state budget. Because of this debt relief from Eskom, government debt is expected to stabilize at a higher level than expected, at 73.6% of GDP in 2025-2026.