Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      Public money, private plans: MPs demand Post Office transparency

      13 June 2025

      Coal to cash: South Africa gets major boost for energy shift

      13 June 2025

      China is behind in AI chips – but for how much longer?

      13 June 2025

      Singapore soared – why can’t we? Lessons South Africa refuses to learn

      13 June 2025

      10 red flags for Apple investors

      13 June 2025
    • World

      Yahoo tries to make its mail service relevant again

      13 June 2025

      Qualcomm shows off new chip for AI smart glasses

      11 June 2025

      Trump tariffs to dim 2025 smartphone shipments

      4 June 2025

      Shrimp Jesus and the AI ad invasion

      4 June 2025

      Apple slams EU rules as ‘flawed and costly’ in major legal pushback

      2 June 2025
    • In-depth

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025

      Digital fortress: We go inside JB5, Teraco’s giant new AI-ready data centre

      30 May 2025

      Sam Altman and Jony Ive’s big bet to out-Apple Apple

      22 May 2025

      South Africa unveils big state digital reform programme

      12 May 2025

      Is this the end of Google Search as we know it?

      12 May 2025
    • TCS

      TechCentral Nexus S0E1: Starlink, BEE and a new leader at Vodacom

      8 June 2025

      TCS+ | The future of mobile money, with MTN’s Kagiso Mothibi

      6 June 2025

      TCS+ | AI is more than hype: Workday execs unpack real human impact

      4 June 2025

      TCS | Sentiv, and the story behind the buyout of Altron Nexus

      3 June 2025

      TCS | Signal restored: Unpacking the Blue Label and Cell C turnaround

      28 May 2025
    • Opinion

      Beyond the box: why IT distribution depends on real partnerships

      2 June 2025

      South Africa’s next crisis? Being offline in an AI-driven world

      2 June 2025

      Digital giants boost South African news media – and get blamed for it

      29 May 2025

      Solar panic? The truth about SSEG, fines and municipal rules

      14 April 2025

      Data protection must be crypto industry’s top priority

      9 April 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » Energy and sustainability » Eskom is in dire straits: These numbers show why

    Eskom is in dire straits: These numbers show why

    By Staff Reporter26 October 2021
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp
    Eskom has suspended several key people at its Tutuka power station and is even expecting arrests due to the “shocking state of neglect” that has largely contributed to the low availability of its power stations.

    This, together with three major incidents – one every month since August – has contributed to the load shedding every night since last Saturday and which is set to continue until at least the weekend.

    This was revealed at Eskom’s quarterly system update where Eskom executives showed a brave face in light of a further deterioration in plant performance and a worrying outlook.

    On Sunday the plant availability was at a mere 58.5% against a target of 70%

    In the absence of its CEO Andre de Ruyter, who is in Europe for the Cop26 climate conference, Eskom’s chief operating officer, Jan Oberholzer, admitted that it is taking longer for the “reliability maintenance” announced early last year to show results.

    Oberholzer repeatedly apologised for the current and recent load shedding.

    On Sunday the plant availability was at a mere 58.5% against a target of 70%. The average so far for the current financial year is 65.3%, which compares poorly to the previous year’s 67.9%.

    In the meantime, the utility is using its diesel-gobbling open-cycle gas turbines (OCGTs) extensively to keep the lights (mostly) on. According to Eskom group executive for generation Phillip Dukashe, the utility has so far this year produced 772GWh with its own OCGTs, against a provision for the full year of 211GWh.  It indicates a load factor of 7.3% at year-end against a target of 1%

    OCGT bill

    So far, the OCGT bill is at R2.5-billion. This makes it increasingly difficult for the cash-strapped state-owned enterprise to make money available for maintenance, he explained. Accordingly, the generation performance is rapidly deteriorating.

    So far this year, Eskom has experienced 342 unit trips against a target of 196, 4.61GW of load losses against a target of 3.97GW and 23.1% unplanned load losses against a target of 18%, Oberholzer said.

    Dukashe said he was shocked when a new power station manager, appointed in February, recently took him on a tour of Tutuka, situated near Standerton. “I used to work at Tutuka. I could not believe the shocking state it is in,” he said.

    Eskom spokesman Sikonathi Mantshantsha added that all six units at Tutuka, each with a capacity of 609MW, were in operation two weeks ago “for the first time since 2019”.

    Dukashe showed that Tutuka has been the single biggest contributor to unplanned breakages so far this year.

    Station contribution to total UCLF FY2022 30 September YTD – 23.14%. Source Eskom

    The three major incidents have jointly further reduced the available generation capacity by more than 2GW. These are:

    • An explosion at Medupi unit 4 (720MW) on 8 August, just a week after the whole power station was completed and finally handed over. A preliminary investigation report has been submitted showing Eskom staff deviated from prescribed procedures. The generator, turbine and auxiliary plant were damaged and the unit could be offline for as long as two years.
    • A fire at Kendal unit 1 (640MW) on 11 September resulted in damage to the civil structure. It is expected to return to service by December. The cause of the fire is not yet clear, but Eskom is looking into possible design defects.
    • On 24 October, Koeberg unit 1 (920MW) tripped for the second time after returning to service on 3 September following a 75 day outage. Oberholzer gave the assurance that there is no nuclear danger, but added that Eskom is “extremely concerned why there have been two trips on unit 1 after a very long outage”.

    In the meantime, the maintenance programme punted to reduce load shedding is lagging.

    Dukashe explained severe challenges to the reliability maintenance programme that is aimed at correcting years of neglect and over-utilisation of the generation fleet.

    Of the 84 outages scheduled for the year ending 31 March, only 18 have been completed and a further nine are in progress. Another 22 have been deferred to later in this financial year, and 10 to the next financial year, which leaves 25 remaining.

    Source: Eskom

    He explained that proper planning before a major outage is crucial. Some spares must be ordered 24 months in advance. If the budget is not available or the release of the money to the generation unit is delayed it impacts not only the specific unit, but also the whole maintenance programme.
    Eskom has budgeted R8.5-billion in the current financial year for running maintenance and a further R8-billion for outages.

    Oberholzer said this must be seen against the backdrop of Eskom’s R400-billion debt burden, which has left it with huge interest payments and a liquidity crisis. Chief financial officer Calib Cassim therefore has to carefully assess competing demands when allocating cash.

    Dukashe further complained that procurement processes are hampering the maintenance programme as key long-term contracts have not yet been concluded but are carried on a month-to-month basis. He also said leadership at power station level is often lacking. Eskom has lost a lot of key skilled staff members and the necessary “vigilance and urgency” is often lacking.

    Oberholzer confirmed that not enough progress has been made in improving Eskom’s procurement processes.

    According to Dukashe the generation fleet is still unreliable and unpredictable. This is mainly addressed by mini-overhauls and general overhauls. It will take another three years before these have been completed at all the coal-fired power stations.

    • This article was originally published by Moneyweb and is used by TechCentral with permission


    Andre de Ruyter Eskom Jan Oberholzer Phillip Dukashe
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleSouth Africa to prioritise electric cars in climate action plans
    Next Article Network rack cable management: Tips to reduce cost, headaches and risk

    Related Posts

    Coal to cash: South Africa gets major boost for energy shift

    13 June 2025

    Why AI could soon be managing your home solar system

    9 June 2025

    Eskom takes a bet on ‘green hydrogen’

    21 May 2025
    Company News

    Huawei Watch Fit 4 Series: smarter sensors, sharper design, stronger performance

    13 June 2025

    Change Logic and BankservAfrica set new benchmark with PayShap roll-out

    13 June 2025

    SAPHILA 2025 – transcending with purpose, connection and AI-powered vision

    13 June 2025
    Opinion

    Beyond the box: why IT distribution depends on real partnerships

    2 June 2025

    South Africa’s next crisis? Being offline in an AI-driven world

    2 June 2025

    Digital giants boost South African news media – and get blamed for it

    29 May 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.