Cape Town – City Power has warned Johannesburg residents that failing to reduce electricity consumption during the current cold weather could lead to prolonged power outages.
The South African Weather Service predicts the coldest days will be Monday and Tuesday, increasing energy demand significantly.
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena emphasised the need for residents to use electricity sparingly to avoid straining the network, which has already been under pressure due to rising consumption levels in recent weeks.
“City Power urges customers to reduce the rate at which they are using electricity as with the temperature dropping, we observe the energy consumption levels increasing at a very high rate. We have been warning our customers of the strain on the system due to the high levels of electricity usage.
#CityPowerServices #CityPowerUpdates
City Power is appealing to the residents of Johannesburg to reduce the usage of electricity.
Due to the current cold weather conditions, we are experiencing a further increase in
energy consumption levels. ^NN pic.twitter.com/2W4z3Nv0ps— @CityPowerJhb (@CityPowerJhb) June 2, 2024
“In recent weeks, we have been recording sharp increase in electricity demand, exerting unbearable pressure on the network and resources thereof. We would like to continue the appeal to our customers to use energy efficiently to prevent overloading the network. The network overload may cause the electricity equipment to fail which will result in prolonged outages,” said Mangena.
He also advised against illegal connections and meter tampering, which exacerbate the problem.
High-demand areas include Alexandra, Bryanston, and several others.
Despite these warnings, Eskom announced that load shedding remains suspended due to improved reliability in their generation fleet, marking 65 consecutive days without load shedding.
Loadshedding remains suspended after 65 days of suspension due to sustained generation performance pic.twitter.com/0bSoG5BTDi
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) May 31, 2024
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Picture: X/@CityPowerJhb
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu