When Cyril Ramaphosa described leading Eskom as the “hardest job in South Africa,” he was not indulging in hyperbole. The chief executive of the state-owned power utility oversees not only the stability of the national grid but also the delicate balancing act of political oversight, entrenched corruption, financial insolvency, and public expectation. Dan Marokane, appointed as Eskom’s Group Chief Executive in March 2024, stepped into a position that has consumed fifteen predecessors in just under two decades, each weighed down by the country’s protracted energy crisis.
Eskom’s decline from global acclaim to domestic burden is well documented. Once celebrated as the Power Company of the Year at the Global Energy Awards in 2001, the utility had by 2023 presided over more than 200 days of load-shedding, largely the result of failing coal plants, spiralling debt, and costly reliance on emergency diesel. In the mid-1980s through to the early 2000s, Eskom was led by only three chief executives and served as the backbone of South Africa’s industrial growth. Since 2007, however, instability in leadership has mirrored its deteriorating infrastructure and governance.
Marokane’s appointment came at a moment of heightened fragility. The utility was burdened with approximately R396 billion in debt, accompanied by an annual R81 billion bill in interest and repayments. For a country where electricity reliability is inseparable from economic stability and social well-being, this position carries stakes that extend far beyond corporate performance. In Ramaphosa’s words, “We should be pleased that the grid had not collapsed; that would have been the worst Armageddon.”
The choice of Marokane was not accidental. The board, chaired by Mteto Nyati, emphasised his “deep knowledge of the utility, the sector, and the political environment.” Marokane is a chemical engineer with postgraduate qualifications in petroleum engineering from the University of London and business administration from the University of Cape Town. His career within Eskom has included senior oversight of capital projects such as Kusile and Medupi, both of which became symbols of the complexity and delays plaguing South Africa’s energy build programme.
His career was not without turbulence. In 2015, Marokane was suspended along with several executives during the period later scrutinised by the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture. Evidence presented suggested that his removal was orchestrated to make way for individuals aligned to the interests of the Gupta family, whose influence over Eskom was a focal point of the state capture era. This episode not only underscored the vulnerability of strategic state enterprises to political interference but also shaped Marokane’s own view of resilience and integrity.
Born in the rural village of Maula near Brits, Marokane grew up as the eldest of seven siblings, taking on early responsibilities within his family. His Catholic upbringing, combined with his exposure to the hardships of rural poverty, shaped his belief in discipline, education, and social justice. “My mother was very clear about the role of education and just being good human beings,” he once reflected. The influence of the Catholic Church, where he became active in social justice causes, instilled what he describes as a lifelong commitment to fairness and accountability.
Education became the means of mobility and transformation. Teachers encouraged his aptitude for mathematics and science, later channelled into engineering. His petroleum engineering training, with its emphasis on problem-solving in contexts of incomplete data, equipped him with skills that he now applies to Eskom’s crisis. “The ability to unpack complex challenges into packages that are implementable is something I love,” he has explained.
Marokane’s decision to return to Eskom in its darkest hour was deeply personal. One Saturday afternoon while playing with his granddaughter, the lights went out. The child, barely four years old, called out “load shedding, grandpa.” It was this moment, he said, that sharpened his resolve to contribute to reshaping the future of the grid.
His leadership style blends strategic planning with a demand for operational delivery. “You can have beautiful slides on strategy, but if delivery doesn’t come through, they are not worth the paper they’re written on. I’m brutal when it comes to execution,” he remarked shortly after his appointment.
Within his first months, Eskom began to show signs of cautious recovery. Operational improvements reduced the severity of load-shedding, while financial projections suggested a potential R10 billion profit – a notable reversal for a utility long associated with losses. Yet these early gains remain precarious, as ageing coal plants, fragile political consensus, and the broader challenges of energy transition continue to weigh heavily.
The question that hovers over Eskom is not only whether Marokane can succeed where so many before him have faltered, but also whether the institution itself can adapt to a changing South African and African energy landscape. South Africa, the continent’s most industrialised economy, remains heavily dependent on coal, while debates around renewable energy, decentralised power production, and just transition policies intensify across Africa. For a region where access to electricity remains uneven and deeply political, Eskom’s trajectory offers lessons beyond South Africa’s borders.
Marokane has framed his role not in terms of personal ambition but as a duty shaped by history, community, and the future of the country’s children. His appointment may not guarantee the end of South Africa’s load-shedding, but it underscores the resilience of institutions and individuals who continue to confront what remains the hardest job in South Africa.
