Ramokgopa inks deal with Chinese firms to fix energy crisis – and urges them to ‘work with speed’

Missed the plot here . Donation of off the rack old stuff , and the cash loan , in Yuan or $$ ? Dudes , Arms Deal , China Rail :-) not settled :-) So it is a done deal all BEE compliant , 25% shares ? Etc . Just signed off now . Local guys ? Shafted ! I would complain . Not out to tender ? ' Emergency Rules' :-) China will come in , and fail . Then leave . Where is the payback ? All new lines ? R20 billion ? Will want rent . No free lunch , ask Sanral ! Still , many Chinese over here . Need the tech guys , have to live somewhere . Need chinese schools . The deal for hospitals might work , for a time , whenever . We sell iron for the Chinese to sell us a transmission grid ? As for Jon Q below , China has been paying the price of cutting off Aussie coal , that their plants were designed to use , does not work at Escom either ! MOU means nothing , see what Con court says in an year or 3 :-) Build huge lines for what ? Where ? Guess we might get a new nuclear power plant , thanks JZ . As for the dissenters , . Old comrades die in plane crash , or other places . As below , Triads have been around . How they work within the CCP , another question ?

So now it starts - we will lend you the money as long as we are your only supplier! Next we will be bending over to get shafted!

This article and the comments (mainly the comments) leave me somehow very saddened. I am saddened that the anti-apartheid movement and the apartheid government in its later years started the destruction of the South African manufacturing capability. I am saddened that the ANC government has almost completed the destruction of our manufacturing capability to the extent that outside help is desperately needed. I am saddened that there seems to be no component of rebuilding a local manufacturing capability in this agreement. I am saddened by the fact that an outside nation recognised the damage being done by BEE as had been painted out by local manufacturing for years. But mostly I am saddened by the negative and abusive vitriol in so many of the comments largely be people of European descent. Why should China not assist with the development of South Africa in exchange for mineral resources, exactly as the British colonial power did? Why should China not send Chinese professionals to oversee development work and ensure proper application of loans, exactly as the British colonial power did? Is this where liberal South African thinking is at - praising all the motives of the British colonial power, but ascribing the worst possible motives to the Chinese colonial power? The ANC has messed up. We need help. Let’s be thankful that here is help offered and let’s accept it and make to most of the opportunity to move forwards

Two questions - Has the Minister in place a mandate to exclude SA Companies in favour of China Companies, and secondly is the ANC Cabal aware of the fact that the Chinese Legal Systen rewards corruption with a death sentance swiftly executed !!!

As we have shrugged off the yoke of British Colonialism, we take on the even bigger burden of Chinese Colonialism

I've spent quite a lot of time in China and the speed and quality of their engineering work is mind-blowing. It will be interesting to see how the Chinese "can do" and "do it now" culture interacts with our red tape. I'm so, so tired of every interaction with China being seen as sinister. We as a country should be happy that we're getting help from by far the greatest infrastructural development nation on history. From purely an engineering perspective, what China achieved in the last 30 years surpasses anything previously done by humans. In just 3 years, China poured more concrete than the USA poured on the entire 20th century. Bridges, roads, dams and most relevant to us, the fastest expansion in electricity infrastructure in human history. China installs the equivalent of South Africa's entire electricity system every 6 months in solar panels alone!

What is a R160 mil donation or a R500 mil loan in the scheme of things. We spend R3 BILJON a month on diesel. Western Cape Dept. of Health has spent millions more on solar and other solutions for their hospitals and clinics. The ANC can not make sums except for that coming into Luthuli House. And the Chinese head of state get SA honor award. The ANC can not meet eye to eye with the West who gives much more to SA than China and Russia, but it feel comfortable with the good mannered Chinese. The Chinese do not eat meat they eat dog or pork. How much avokados are used when they prefer rice. Denise Smit