The Department of Public Enterprises has entered into a Collaboration Framework Agreement with the China Development Bank (CDB) which the department says will enhance the sustainability of State-Owned Companies (SOCs).
The agreement was signed following the Brics Summit held in Sandton last week.
The bank already has funding agreements with Eskom and Transnet for locomotives and the building of power stations, Medupi and Kusile.
DPE minister Pravin Gordhan said the country was laying the foundation for a more sustainable path to ensure its developmental goals stayed on track.
“This agreement is also a sign of our commitment as government to create an enabling environment for our SOCs. They are a critical lever to drive service delivery and economic opportunity to improve the lives of millions of South Africans,” Gordhan said.
He added that the agreement would open new paths for SOCs.
“This agreement is a culmination of the discussions and engagements we conducted with the CDB during our visit to Beijing in May this year,” Gordhan said.
“The DPE is confident that this agreement will allow us to better position our SOCs for future growth as we leverage the exchange of expertise, technical skills and other strategic catalysts that this collaboration framework agreement makes possible,” Gordhan said.
The agreement is one of the key initiatives to deepen China-South Africa relations following Chinese President Xi Jinping’s official state visit to Pretoria on Tuesday.
CDB vice chairman and president, Tan Jiong, said: “We view this agreement as one more step in our efforts to enhance cooperation across a range of key strategic sectors to enable further development that is underpinned by a strong relationship between our two countries."
“The CDB already has a close relationship with Transnet and Eskom, but now we also have the opportunity to work with the DPE in other areas of mutual interest, including mining and forestry”. – SAnews.gov.za
