[Submitted via press release]
SABC PAYS OFF NEDBANK GOVERNMENT GUARANTEED LOAN
Johannesburg, Monday 07 October 2013 - The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is pleased to announce that it has paid off its Government Guaranteed loan from Nedbank.
The original repayment date was 28 November 2014, but the SABC has managed to prepay the debt by settling the loan in full at the end of September 2013. The original interest amount payable was R264 248 197.87 and the actual amount paid up to the end of September 2013 was R219 038 847.42 thus ensuring a saving on interest of R45 209 350.45.
The SABC received a R1 Billion loan from Nedbank in November/December 2009, when the corporation was experiencing a cash flow problem. ‘
Ms. Ellen Tshabalala, the SABC’s Board Chairperson, stated that she was pleased with how the organisation had managed to fast-track payments in paying off the loan. “The paying off of this loan is really exciting news for the organisation as this will enable energies and monies to be re-focused on other areas such as content development," said Ms Tshabala.
"The Board would like to thank the Management team, under the leadership of the GCEO Ms. Lulama Mokhobo, the Acting COO, Mr. Hlaudi Motsoeneng and the Acting Chief Financial Officer Mr. Tian Olivier, in making sure that payments were fast-tracked to ensure that the loan was paid up before the stipulated deadline, as this was no easy feat. As the new Board we will ensure that the SABC does not find itself in a similar situation” concluded Ms. Tshabalala.