Load shedding lowered to stage 2 until further notice: Eskom
South Africans can breathe a sigh of relief as Eskom has announced that stage 3 load shedding will not be implemented at 4 pm on Tuesday as previously scheduled.
The power utility said this is due to adequate emergency reserves to manage the evening peak and electricity demand.
“Stage 2 load shedding will continue to be implemented until further notice. Stage 3 load shedding will not be implemented at 16:00 as previously communicated. Eskom will communicate should any significant changes occur,” said Eskom spokesperson Daphne Mokoena.
On Monday, Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said significant progress has been made in reducing the intensity of load shedding since the government implemented its Energy Action Plan.
Ramokgopa said despite the odd setback, the government is making progress.
"The improvement of the EAF (energy availability factor) and unplanned outages are a result of concerted efforts focusing on priority power stations, Kusile, Kendal, Majuba, Matla, Tutuka and Duvha, where each power station has its detailed recovery plan. A total of 3 510MW was recovered by January 2024 through these interventions.
"The highest level of planned maintenance was performed between December 2023 and January 2024, reaching an average of 18% of the generation capacity.
“Although heightened maintenance negated the EAF, the deliberate spike in planned maintenance is aimed at improving the reliability of the generation fleet to deliver long-term benefits and ensure the security of energy supply,” the minister added.
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