Behind the drive is its perspicacious CEO, Ms Tshifularo Mashava. Joe Makhafola sat with the stylish, innovative trailblazer to unpack how she steers the entity ahead of the curve and provides value to its customers.
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Like fine, good old wine, it only improves with age and experience, developing refined wisdom over time. With the scarcity of transformational leadership, her competitive edge is that Tshifularo Mashava is decisive and gets things done while others are still pondering. Hers is a very effective style, fostering change and growth.
She is an astute leader with a calm demeanour, calculating, an effective communicator, and unassuming yet situationally aware. She is highly qualified and equal to the task for the role and displays strong decisiveness, especially when handling matters of national importance. City Power is undoubtedly in capable hands.
Despite her demanding, back-to-back schedule, she maintains a warm, approachable personality. Stepping into her office, one is immediately struck by both her welcoming presence and the professionalism of the environment.
True to her character and as a female leader, her apex of priorities, having lived through a male-dominated engineering fraternity, was to get the house in order to address the elephant in the room.
“Throughout both experiences, at Eskom and City Power, one thing was clear: the energy sector has been male-dominated. When I returned to City Power in 2016, I led Corporate Services. From the start, one of my key missions was to change the face of the sector by actively working to bring more women to the forefront.”
“At the time, I never imagined I would eventually become the CEO of the entity. I simply wanted to make a meaningful impact from where I stood, ensuring that more women had opportunities to grow and lead in this industry,” Mashava said.
Today, women hold key executive roles at City Power, including Chief Financial Officer and Strategy & Risk General Manager, amongst others.
City Power established a newly created unit led by a female manager, titled the Manager for Just Energy Transition. One of her core initiatives is a program called Women in Energy, through which the entity collaborates with various stakeholders who are leading efforts to empower women in the sector. Recently, there was an event focused on ensuring that women in the workplace are aligned with this agenda, reinforcing the commitment to transformation.
“As a woman, I believe it is essential to lead by example, not only to plan, but to actively implement change. When people walk into our organisation, they should immediately see that women play a visible and vital role. More importantly, they should recognise that we are inclusive in every sense of the word, reflecting the diversity of South Africa, a nation composed of many races and backgrounds,” she says.
“One of the challenges we encountered involved the integration of female electricians. Historically, they were often excluded from training programs that would allow them to qualify as operators and become fully-fledged members of the technical team. Many team leaders, predominantly male, were hesitant, citing concerns about safety or the possibility of pregnancy.”
Mashava says City Power has launched a graduate program specifically designed to attract and recruit young talent across all races and genders, young women and men alike. “We have worked to ensure that inclusivity is embedded at every level of the Expo, from entry-level positions to leadership roles. Everyone is welcome,” she says.
Inclusivity did not happen by chance. It was the result of intentional and sustained effort. She takes skills development and compliance with the Employment Equity Act seriously, not merely as legal obligations, but as core components of our organisational culture. It is about creating a workplace where every individual feels valued and included.
“True transformation means seeing women in decision-making roles, like chief engineers and senior leaders within the energy industry. I am proud to say that at City Power today, we are moving in that direction. We have brought in young female professionals who are now actively participating in technical and leadership capacities, and that is a true indicator of empowerment and progress,” she says.
It is not just about having women in the organisation. It is about where they are positioned. When she joined City Power, women made up around 28% of the workforce. However, many of them were in administrative roles, not in leadership or technical positions. That’s not empowerment. To her, transformation starts with meaningful employment.
Reimagining Energy: A Vision for City Power
Mashava says that we must not lose sight of the era we are in. An era defined by the urgent need to reduce our carbon footprint. Currently, City Power remains 90% reliant on Eskom, which itself is heavily dependent on coal. This model is no longer sustainable.
“Our customers are more informed and environmentally conscious than ever before. They are demanding greener energy solutions—and rightly so. As a response to this shift, we are committed to a transition that prioritizes sustainable energy procurement. This means actively reducing our reliance on traditional, coal-based power and diversifying our energy portfolio,” she says.
Diversification is at the core of City Power’s energy transition. By sourcing power from alternative providers, the entity enhances its energy security and addresses affordability challenges. Embracing diverse energy sources such as waste-to-energy, rooftop solar, and other renewable solutions will allow the utility to deliver cleaner, more affordable electricity to our communities.
“Under my leadership, the vision for City Power is clear: We are here to reimagine energy. This goes beyond simply purchasing and distributing electricity. We aim to become a proactive player in power generation, particularly in the green energy space,” she says.
Mashava recalls that when she started her career in 2000, electricity was in abundance and cheap, powered mostly by coal. Today, the world has changed. It is the age of Artificial Intelligence, Electric Vehicles (EVs), and, of course, climate change. Its role cannot go unchanged.
“We are not just adapting — we are leading.”
Hence, in no time, all the parking lots of City Power will be converted into EV charging stations. The buildings will become part of the green energy ecosystem. City Power will become a catalyst for sustainable urban energy, reliable, affordable, and green.
As a pioneering woman in the energy sector, she has consistently defied convention, breaking through barriers in a traditionally male-dominated industry. Driven by innovation and purpose, she doesn’t just embrace change, she initiates it. Her vision is to lead by example, inspiring a new generation of leaders to champion sustainability, equity, and bold transformation. With every project she undertakes, she aims to set new standards and shift mindsets, determined to turn her passion for progress into a lasting movement.
Leading with Electric Vehicles (EVs)
City Power is spearheading the shift toward a greener fleet, starting with City Power’s 700-vehicle fleet. The vision includes converting these to electric vehicles, ranging from trucks to buses, and even smaller utility vehicles. This is not just for municipal use, it is about setting a precedent and enabling private companies to follow suit. This will result in City Power realising its strategic intent of creating demand for EV infrastructure (charging stations, service hubs), reducing carbon emissions, and stimulating a local green economy around electric mobility.
Powering the Future Responsibly
City Power aims to provide greener, more sustainable energy options to customers, enabling them to remain powered while reducing their environmental impact. Key moves include investment in cleaner energy generation sources, exploring partnerships with private entities to diversify power sources, and ensuring energy reliability during the green transition.
Global Benchmarking and Local Innovation
To stay at the cutting edge, City Power has looked outward for inspiration and learning. Benchmarking visits to countries like Portugal and Italy have offered insights into how leading cities manage their green energy transitions. The utility will align local strategies with international best practices, localize global innovations to fit South Africa’s unique energy landscape.
Empowering the “Prosumers”
As Elizabeth Blackwell said, It is not easy to be a pioneer, but oh, it is fascinating.
Mashava says that the customer is no longer just a consumer. More and more are generating their own energy via solar, for example, and City Power is adapting to this. An innovative approach would include implementing the bidirectional metering systems, enabling seamless integration of customer-generated power into the grid, and creating policies and infrastructure that recognize and reward prosumers.
City Power also run enterprise and supplier development programs that focus on supporting youth and people with disabilities, helping them access opportunities in the Just Energy Transition. One exciting initiative is a competition it launched in schools to raise awareness and educate students on the energy transition, encouraging a shift in mindset from an early age.
Driving Transformation and Inclusivity
Mashava is of the firm belief that transformation is not only about technology, but about people as well. She says City Power is consciously building a leadership team that reflects the society it serves. Notable progress includes intentional efforts to ensure diverse leadership at decision-making occupies a seat at the table and a cultural shift that supports inclusivity and voices from all backgrounds.
“What ties all of this together is a personal and collective drive: to make City Power a catalyst for greatness, not just a utility provider, but a leader in societal progress, innovation, and transformation,” she says.
Personal principles that have shaped her leadership style
“For me, leadership is fundamentally rooted in collaboration. I firmly believe in the power of collective greatness. The idea that the best solutions don’t always originate at the top. Often, the most valuable insights come from those on the front lines or within the core of an organisation. That is why my leadership style is more collaborative than directive,” she says.
“I strive to create an environment where everyone feels heard and empowered. Even when setting a vision, I approach it as a shared journey. While I recognise that final decisions and accountability ultimately rest with me, I believe a vision gains true power when everyone has had a voice in shaping it. People are far more committed when they feel a sense of ownership. Naturally, there are times when a top-down approach is necessary, particularly during crises or urgent situations, but I rely on that sparingly,” Mashava said.
Her default is always to lead through collaboration, because she has witnessed how much stronger outcomes can be when they are built together.
She is navigating incredibly complex terrain, balancing stakeholder expectations, energy security, affordability, and the accelerating shift toward greener solutions. It’s remarkable how job descriptions rarely capture the full picture. You step into a role expecting one thing, and suddenly you are juggling community interests, regulatory pressures, and customer demands that evolve faster than ever.
Energetic journey
It has been a truly fascinating journey for her, challenging at times, but also deeply rewarding. Her formal involvement in the energy sector began in 2016 when she joined City Power. However, her career in this field actually started much earlier.
She began her professional journey at Eskom in 2000, where she spent over eight years until 2008. Joining City Power in 2016, therefore, felt in many ways like a return home. Interestingly, she had already been involved with City Power in a different capacity back in 2012, when she joined as part of the Deloitte Consulting team. As a result, she was already familiar with the organisation and its environment.
In terms of the work itself, the transition from Eskom to City Power was not particularly drastic. The two entities operate within the same industry, serve similar customer bases, and have comparable operating models. For example, both Eskom and City Power supply electricity to different regions within Johannesburg. Eskom serves areas such as Sandton and Orange Farm, while City Power covers regions like Alexandra.
The 20/23/24 financial year city power successfully electrified several informal settlements including Amarasta in Alexandra, Roodepoort, Slovo Park, Veggieland, Princess Plot, Matholesville and Kliptown. A total of 2675 households were connected well above the initial target of 2500 as reflected in the auditor general’s report and the annual performance review.
Overall, while the roles and responsibilities have evolved, the core of the work has remained the same: powering communities and advancing transformation in a sector that still has significant progress to make, particularly in terms of gender representation.
South Africa’s energy transition is both urgent and complex. The legacy dependence on Eskom, with its aging infrastructure and financial instability, creates real vulnerabilities. Shifting from a centralised, coal-heavy model to a more decentralised, diverse mix, renewables, private IPPs, embedded generation, and even regional cooperation, requires systemic change.
But it is also a major opportunity to build resilience, attract investment, create jobs in the green economy, and expand access. Affordability remains key, especially for vulnerable communities, so innovations in financing and grid management will be essential.
The organisation is plagued by high levels of theft, vandalism, and illegal connections carried out by determined criminals whose livelihoods depend on these activities. The challenge is overwhelming, as the organization is not a law enforcement agency, its mandate is to provide energy.
Since the beginning of December 2024, a series of arrests have been made in connection with criminal activity targeting city powers infrastructure highlighting an alarming rise in such incident.Illegal connections deprive the power utility of the revenue it urgently needs to support its just transition and other innovative projects amid climate change.
City Power has, in itself, has become a crime scene. Allegations of serious irregularities and ongoing investigations risk diverting attention from the organization’s core responsibilities. It has been under siege and has suffered reputational damage following allegations of corruption and investigations. For Mashava, however, this appears to be a necessary evil—an opportunity to set the record straight and root out criminal elements wherever they may emerge.
Only time will tell whether history will judge her kindly after her departure, both for addressing the crisis and for implementing innovative ideas that future generations may come to value. Recently, City Power was recently nominated in one of the country’s leading publication, Sunday Times awards, which is a promising sign of recovery.
For Mashava, this is thanksless job.
Yes, I did come back to work after having my baby—so it’s not unusual, and it’s encouraging to see that women are increasingly supported in the workplace. This is part of a larger conversation about creating inclusive opportunities, especially in sectors like energy, where traditionally there has been less representation.
Joe Makhafola is a regular BBQ and Leadership contributor.
- Her apex of priorities, having lived through a male-dominated engineering fraternity, was to get the house in order to address the elephant in the room
- Often, the most valuable insights come from those on the front lines or within the core of an organisation
