News flash: View the judgement:

Media 24 vs. Eskom & BHP Billiton: 

Secret electricity pricing deals

Click here to download the full judgement by Judge Kgomo (2 MB pdf file)  

On 5 August 2011, Judge Kgomo handed down judgement in the South Gauteng High Court ordering Eskom, BHP Billiton and their business associates to hand over all documents requested by Media24 in terms of a Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) application.
 
This will reveal details of secret commodity-linked electricity pricing deals between Eskom and BHP Billiton that have long been held to be confidential.
 
Background to the secret commodity-linked electricity pricing contracts, the PAIA application and the court action launched by Media24 can be found in the article: "Eskom, BHP Billiton and the secret electricity pricing deals" by Chris Yelland, managing director, EE Publishers, published in the May 2011 issue of Energize magazine.
 
Through the judgement and court order, Media24 has won access to everything it asked for, namely:   

• The names of the signatories to the Eskom's secret Mozal and Hillside electricity supply contracts
• The dates of commencement and termination of the above contracts
• The full details of the secret electricity pricing formulae in the above contracts