Eskom plans daytime load shedding suspension all week – here’s the latest schedule
Power utility Eskom says that it will continue to suspend load shedding during the day for the rest of the week and into the weekend.
The group said that load shedding will be suspended during the day between 05h00 and 16h00 from Wednesday (13 December) to Sunday (17 December), with stage 2 being implemented in the evening from 16h00 to 05h00.
The suspensions are thanks to lower demand, with more generation capacity expected to return to service as the weekend approaches.
Wednesday, 13 December
- Suspended: until 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Thursday, 14 December
- Stage 2: 00h00 to 05h00
- Suspended: 05h00 to 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Friday, 15 December
- Stage 2: 00h00 to 05h00
- Suspended: 05h00 to 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Saturday, 16 December
- Stage 2: 00h00 to 05h00
- Suspended: 05h00 to 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Sunday, 17 December
- Stage 2: 00h00 to 05h00
- Suspended: 05h00 to 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Unplanned outages are currently at 13,375MW, and planned maintenance is 7,820MW of generation capacity.
A total of 2,000MW will be returned to service by Friday, Eskom said.
The group added that any changes to the schedule will be announced if and when they occur.
Independent energy analyst Pieter Jordaan noted this week that the return to periods of suspension of load shedding is thanks to a trifecta of supportive conditions for the grid: demand is trending lower, breakdowns are decreasing, and the return of Koeberg has boosted the power supply.
However, all of these supports are constantly under pressure, and the key performance indicator – energy availability (EAF) – is not showing signs of improving to the degree that Eskom or the politicians in charge have promised.
EAF remains stubbornly low at around 55%, a far reach from the 2023 peak of 60% seen about eight weeks ago, and still further off from the 65% target Eskom wants to reach by March 2024 (only three months away).
Demand has started to moderate once more, relieving pressure on power generation, which, in turn, has narrowed the supply gap. “Demand is inching back towards the seasonal norm, with an imminent and sharp taper expected as 2023 starts to wind down,” Jordaan said.
Breakdowns (aka “unplanned outages or UCLF) have sustained a downward momentum for a third week and are on course to improve their yearly best.
Schedules
For people living in the major metros, load shedding schedules are available here:
- City of Johannesburg
- City of Ekurhuleni
- City of Tshwane
- City of Cape Town (PDF)
- Nelson Mandela Bay
- eThekwini
- Manguang
- Buffalo City
For access to other load shedding schedules, Eskom has made them available on loadshedding.eskom.co.za.
Smartphone users can also download the app EskomSePush to receive push notifications when load shedding is implemented, as well as the times the area you are in will be off.
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