Ramokgopa: Intensity of load shedding coming down
Electricity Minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said on Tuesday that the return of load shedding would not negate the progress made in solving the electricity crisis.
South Africans have gone nearly two weeks without the dreaded power cuts due to a sustained improvement in generation capacity.
However, a drop in temperatures and heavy rains have battered large parts of the country since the weekend.
Inclement weather has led to South Africans using appliances like heaters to keep themselves warm, which could result in a surge in electricity use.
This, in turn, could see the return of load shedding.
Ramokgopa briefed the media on the implementation of the Energy Action Plan on Tuesday.
“I have to emphasise that there will be setbacks as a nature of this. So, if there is some load shedding tomorrow, it doesn’t mean that the trend line has dissipated. We are trying to undermine the opportunity for these units to fail because as they fail, the system’s operator must initiate load shedding.
“If you look at the higher stages, stage 4 last year during this period, the month of March, was 12 (days). This year, it’s four. Stage 5 last year March was six, and we didn’t have this year.
“Stage 6, we didn’t have for both years. Stage 1 to stage 2 accounted for half of what we experienced this year, as compared to stage 4 and 5 from last year, which accounted for half of what was experienced.
“The message we are conveying is that the intensity of load shedding is coming down.”
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