Andre de Ruyter shares his future plans – including coming home

Former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter, who is currently a senior fellow at Yale, says his future plans include coming back home and possibly writing another book.

Last year, De Ruyter left South Africa after an eNCA interview wherein he made serious allegations against ANC politicians and top government officials.

These explosive revelations put his life in danger, and he was advised to leave the country. He spent the next few months in Europe.

“It enabled me to be calm with the confidence that I am in a place where it will be difficult to track me down,” he said.

In August 2023, De Ruyter joined Yale’s Jackson School of Global Affairs as a senior fellow for the 2023 to 2024 academic year.

De Ruyter said he feels safe in the United States as he doubts the tentacles of the criminal networks he implicated extend to where he lives.

Speaking to Biznews, he said although he enjoys his time in America, he would like to eventually return to South Africa.

“It is a great privilege to teach at Yale. I find it hugely stimulating and engaging with bright faculty members and students,” he said.

However, as much as he enjoys his time at Yale, South Africa remains his home, and he still loves the country and its people.

“South Africa is the place I want to return to when the situation warrants it. That is my longer-term plan,” he said.

Writing another book

De Ruyter first book, Truth to Power: My Three Years Inside Eskom, was a smash hit and the top seller in South Africa last year.

It raises the question of whether the former Eskom CEO has plans to write another book and what it will be about.

He told Biznews that he is considering writing another book, but it will not be about Eskom. “There is only so much truth you can speak to power before power should listen,” he said.

His plan for a new book is one which sets out the case for enabling substantial capital flows from the global north to the global south.

This money should enable developing economies in the global south, like South Africa, to grow in a low-carbon way.

He said the way the global financial system is structured makes it difficult to invest in projects in developing economies in the south.

“To invest in a new generation plant in sub-Saharan Africa comes at a cost-of-capital which is ten times higher than in the global north,” he said.

It leads to a bizarre situation where the country with the highest installed solar capacity per capita is the Netherlands, which has very little sunshine.

Countries in Africa, which have abundant sunshine, are energy-starved and struggle to grow their economies because of the lack of electricity.

“The average African consumes less electricity annually than an American refrigerator. It is a mind-blowing statistic,” he said.

“We will never address the problem of poverty in the developing world if we do not allow money to flow to these economies.”

De Ruyter said there may be a solution to this problem, which warrants the publication of something.

He highlighted that although the topic interests him, he has not committed to writing a book yet. He also cautioned that “It won’t be as racy a read as my first book”.