Embattled energy utility Eskom has extended the employment contract of acting CEO Brian Molefe for a further three months, clarifying in a statement that the extension would afford him sufficient time to put into effect strategies that aimed to ensure the parastatal’s financial and operational sustainability.

The decision to extend came following consultation between the board and Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown, Eskom said on Wednesday.

Molefe was seconded to Eskom from Transnet in April with the aim of stabilising the struggling energy utility’s leadership after government cited his “extensive understanding” of the public sector and the environment in which State-owned companies (SoCs) operated as marking his suitability for the role.

However, responding to the announcement, labour union, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), said in a statement that it did not support the decision to extend Molefe’s contract.

The union claimed that he had yet to meet with the NUM to present his plans of stabilising the utility, while it condemned public suggestions by the acting Eskom head that he continued to consider a possible privatisation of the SoC.

“As the NUM, we want to [make it] clear that [the] Eskom board has never informed us that they had extended Molefe's contract. While the media credits Molefe with reducing load-shedding, Eskom employees regard him as a dismal failure in terms of boosting their morale . . . [and] the moral support of employees behind electricity generation is very critical towards the reduction of load-shedding.

“It is our view as the NUM that the leadership vacuum in Eskom has discouraged, demotivated our members and employees at Eskom to be unproductive due to a lack of proper and effective strategic direction,” stated NUM energy sector coordinator Paris Mashego.