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German software giant SAP has agreed to pay the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) R500 million within seven days over corrupt contracts at Eskom.
The SIU said that the fine stems from two "invalid" contracts that SAP entered into with the power utility between 2013 and 2016.
The unit said that after SAP clinched a deal to provide Eskom with software licences, maintenance and support, it paid millions of rands in backhanders to a company linked to the Gupta family called CAD House.
The R500 million payment forms part of a Special Tribunal Order the SIU and the software group agreed to last week.
The order states that the payment shall indemnify SAP and its employees against any future financial claims the SIU or Eskom may bring in connection with the two contracts.
It does not, however, absolve SAP or any implicated party from possible prosecution.
The R500 million payment is separate* from the larger R2.2 billion fine that SAP has pledged to pay South African state-owned enterprises.
Prosecutors from SA and the US announced the record fine earlier this year following months of negotiations with the software group.
As part of the deal, SAP acknowledged it bribed SA officials to win lucrative contracts at Transnet, Eskom, the City of Johannesburg and the Department of Water and Sanitation.
Correction: A previous version of this article stated that the R500 million payment was part of the R2.2 billion fine. This is incorrect. The two payments are separate.
