The DA welcomes Minister Dion George’s granting of environmental appeal against unneeded and undesirable Karpowerships

The DA notes with approval the setting aside of the Saldanha Bay Karpowership environmental authorisation by Minister Dion George.

The adjudication hinged on the assessment of the “need and desirability” for such a project, with the Minister referencing the turnaround in South Africa’s energy supply and availability. This fatal blow leaves the ill-conceived Karpowership deal dead in the water.

The DA has consistently fought against the Karpowership deal on multiple fronts. The application was fiscally and environmentally unfeasible, and this latest judgment is a vindication of the DA’s staunch opposition.

This embarrassing fiasco has been marred from the start by poor planning, a lack of transparency, and a bending of the law. The ANC, led by Cyril Ramaphosa, Gwede Mantashe, and a conveyor belt of Ministers of Transport, attempted to saddle South Africa with an overly long 20-year “emergency” contract which independent estimates say would cost our ailing fiscus an eye-watering R200 billion.

The DA will continue to fight against the misuse of taxpayer money, the destruction of our precious environment, and any other unneeded and undesirable projects that the ANC may attempt to implement.