TALES BY THE BROTHERS GRIMM AND GRIMMER
Once upon a time, there was a weapons deal which meant that the South African people would pay R30 billion. Part of the return for this was the industrial development zone at Coega. One of the major potential roleplayers there, Alcan/Alcoa is noted for its contracts with the US pentagon for weapons manufacture. Which brings to mind the non-fairytale fact that 80 per cent of people throughout Africa are at starvation levels and yet these same countries somehow “afford” high-tech weaponry with which to conduct civil wars. Provided by whom?
Turn the page and there is the truly terrifying story of director-general of Public Enterprises Portia Molefe saying the government (aka the taxpayer) may have to pay the full cost of the pebble bed modular reactor (PBMR) project. Professor Stephen Thomas was employed by the South African government to research the economic viability of the PBMR. He clearly stated that financial organizations, including the World Bank, did not invest in nuclear reactors, considering them too risky. The same applied to most private investors. But for the people of a country – especially a developing nation – to take on the costs of development of nuclear reactors on their own would be ruinous. Last year Public Enterprises Minister Alec Erwin said that the PBMR demonstration plant would cost R15bn. The PBMR company (also a government organization) said R16bn. Now it is R17bn. Prof Thomas estimated the cost at R25bn – some say R32bn.
Then another Grimm tale is of Denel – the company that finally stated this year that it will not spend any more money on South Africa’s not-so-secret weapon – the Rooivalk attack helicopter. It has already cost R8 billion of taxpayers’ money over the past 14 years, but nobody wants it.
There is the happy, sunny story of a South African invention of new solar panels that everyone wanted. But the page turned over so quickly on that one. Somehow this story did not receive the same amount of press attention or government investment.
You may need a nightlight for more of these tales, since Finance Minister Trevor Manuel has put aside R6 billion to finance 51 per cent of the PBMR over the next three years. The question that remains is who will pay the other half. Crack open that piggybank.
While you are calculating, you will have to include the R10 million per year allotted to the Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa (Necsa) also a government company, to build Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs). Unfortunately, Rob Adams CEO of Necsa has said they will have to pay for ouside expertise since South Africa may have the technology saved on disc – but no actual scientists, unless they bring them out of retirement. So the money for nuclear technology may go to Russian scientists (from the Kingdom of Far Far Away) in a trade for South African food.
What is the outlook for the starving people of South Africa, because if the government continues in this way, there will be no “happily ever after”.
Yours sincerely
INGELA RICHARDSON
