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Paper short abstract:

The paper analyses the impact of liberation discourses on allocating rents, by outlining how discourses around transformation shape rent-seeking processes at Eskom, South Africa's national electricity company.

Paper long abstract:

This paper explores how discourses around transformation shape rent seeking processes, using Eskom – South Africa’s national electricity company – as a case study. The paper frames discourses around transformation (broadly referring to measures to tackle apartheid’s legacy of inequality) as forms of liberation discourse with nationalistic and developmental characteristics. Actors operationalise these discourses to justify the allocation of rents from Eskom, like coal supply contracts, using discourses around transformation to frame decisions or transactions as productive or ‘transformative’.

Eskom is at the centre of high-profile corruption allegations involving the allocation of contracts and is unable to provide reliable or affordable access to electricity. Several researchers have blamed the faction associated with former president, Jacob Zuma, for recent crises at Eskom. This paper expands on these claims, offering a framework that contextualises crises at Eskom beyond a particular faction’s actions. In addition, analysing discourses around transformation offers insights to emerging debates over ‘just’ energy transitions. These emerging debates reflect ongoing disagreement over how ‘transformation’ should be realised in post-apartheid South Africa and the wider challenges of pursuing ‘development’ in a global neoliberal context.

Through documentary analysis and key informant interviews the paper contributes to research into the political economy of South Africa’s energy sector. The conceptual framework also contributes to research into the allocation of resources from public institutions and these processes’ impact. The paper makes these contributions by outlining how the operationalisation of discourses around transformation have evolved at Eskom, and their impact on rent-seeking processes at the company.