Andre de Ruyter’s message to the South African government

Andre de Ruyter warned that South Africa will face a collapse unless the government restores confidence, and that the private sector holds the key to the country’s energy future.

De Ruyter is an energy and industrial executive best known for his time as the Group Chief Executive of Eskom.

As Eskom CEO, he focused on tackling corruption, malfeasance, and coal theft syndicates and was a strong advocate for the transition to renewable energy.

He has become an outspoken critic of government corruption and has written a book, Truth to Power, exposing the rot at South Africa’s power utility.

At the recent Biznews Investment Conference in September 2025, De Ruyter shared his views on South Africa and the local energy market.

He said the government should get out of the business sector. “If goods or services can be provided competitively by the private sector, let the private sector do it,” he said.

De Ruyter argued that the government should facilitate and enable investment and only provide services in areas where the private sector cannot do so.

This is also the case for energy. He cited the rapid increase in solar energy installations across South Africa as a means to combat load-shedding and protect against Eskom’s price increases.

“The private sector added 6.1 gigawatts in eighteen months. That is the size of approximately one-and-a-half Medupi power stations,” he said.

De Ruyter said this shows that the private sector solves problems. “The free market system works,” he said.

He added that there is tremendous waste and moral hazard associated with South Africa’s state-owned enterprises.

“All the state-owned enterprises play with money that is guaranteed by the Treasury, which is ultimately the taxpayer,” De Ruyter explained.

“This means state-owned enterprises are not governed by innovation, efficiency, and good governance,” he said. “This does not add up. This is why I believe that the government should get out of business.”

South Africa faces collapse unless the government acts

De Ruyter further warned that South Africa faces a collapse if the government doesn’t make decisions to restore confidence and take action against the country’s decline.

“South Africa is in crisis. Our economy shows no sign of meaningful growth, investor confidence is shrinking,” he said.

He added that the South African rand is volatile and that government debt is ballooning to unsustainable levels.

The government is currently paying approximately R1.1 billion per day to service debt, which is essentially wasted money as it does not improve the country.

He added that civil unrest is destabilising cities and towns, crime is pervasive and increasingly violent, and political murders are now frequent events.

“Sadly, our talented young people see little chance of making their future in this country,” he said.

De Ruyter urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to take action to address the situation, including implementing business-friendly policies.

A good start is the creation of a new anti-corruption body to replace the Scorpions and a moratorium on equity deal requirements for new investments.

There should also be a firm commitment to fiscal prudence, zero-based budgeting, and an independent Reserve Bank.

“Cut the size of the cabinet and deregulate and stop state-owned enterprises from crowding out the private sector with government-guaranteed funds,” he said.

On foreign policy, he stated that South Africa needed to distance itself from America’s adversaries and recommit to upholding property rights and due process in land reform.

Most importantly, De Ruyter insisted, the country’s focus must be growth. “Grow, grow, grow, because that solves almost all of our problems,” he said.

“The answer is not more regulation, racial quotas, or forced ideological interventions in the economy. We’ve got to remove every impediment imaginable to enable the economy to perform to its potential.”