Cape Town – Eskom, the South African power utility, has announced that it will implement Stage 4 and Stage 5 load shedding until further notice.
The decision comes after breakdowns occurred at multiple power stations overnight. Stage 4 load shedding will be in effect from 05:00 to 16:00, while Stage 5 load shedding will occur from 16:00 to 05:00 daily.
“Over the past 24 hours, a generating unit each at Duvha, Kriel, Majuba, Medupi and Tutuka power stations were returned to service.
“In the same period, a generation unit each at Arnot, Camden, and two generating units at Kriel power stations were taken out of service due to breakdowns. Furthermore, the delay in returning units to service at Arnot, Kendal, Kriel, Lethabo, Matla, Tutula and two units each at Hendrina power stations continue to add to the current capacity constraints,” Eskom said.
Stage 5 loadshedding will be implemented from 16:00 this afternoon until 05:00 on Wednesday. Thereafter, Stage 4 loadshedding will be implemented from 05:00 until 16:00 on Wednesday pic.twitter.com/uXGJMlLqao
— Eskom Hld SOC Ltd (@Eskom_SA) May 23, 2023
By Tuesday morning, breakdowns at power stations rendered at least 18 177MW of generating capacity offline coupled with a further 2629MW out due to planned maintenance.
“The team is working tirelessly to ensure that generating units are returned to service as soon as possible.
“We thank those South Africans who do heed the call to use electricity sparingly and efficiently, including switching off geysers from 5pm to 9pm, in helping to alleviate the pressure on the power system and avoiding higher stages of load shedding,” Eskom said.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
