Eskom expects to implement stage-2 power cuts during the evening peaks all of this week – assuming the situation doesn’t deteriorate.
The state-owned electricity utility, whose ageing and unreliable coal fleet is unable to keep up with demand from South Africans, said load shedding will take place from 5pm to 10pm throughout the week.
That’s after the company was forced over the weekend to implement cuts as high as stage 4 after it lost generating units and was forced to conserve diesel at its open-cycle gas turbines ahead of the delivery of more diesel stock on Monday.
Eskom warned that it might be forced to implement load shedding outside the evening peak hours this week but that “as far as possible” it will “endeavour to limit it to these times so as “to limit the impact of the capacity shortages on the public”.
On Saturday, Eskom ramped up load shedding to stage 4 – unusual on a weekend when demand is lower – after it lost three generating units. It was able to reduce the cuts to stage 2 on Sunday morning, before raising these to stage 3 in the afternoon. – © 2022 NewsCentral Media