Eskom has implemented rolling blackouts with immediate effect. The stage-2 load shedding will last until Tuesday night, the state-owned utility said in a statement at 5pm on Sunday.

“Eskom regrets to inform the public that due to a loss of 10 generating units at seven power stations during the past 24 hours, stage-2 load shedding will be implemented starting at 5pm this evening (Sunday) until 10pm on Tuesday,” it said.

Eskom lost three generation units at the Tutuka power station due to a “loss of air compressors”, while a unit at Majuba was forced to shut down and another unit tripped. A generation unit at Kriel was taken down for a boiler tube leak, while a unit was forced down due to a steam leak at Matla power station.

There were also trips of a unit each at Medupi, Kusile and Duvha power stations, which Eskom said are being investigated.

The breakdowns over the past 24 hours represent a total loss of more than 6GW of generating capacity, taking total unplanned capacity lost to 16.1GW. Planned maintenance outages are at 4.2GW. — (c) 2021 NewsCentral Media