Load shedding is here to spoil your weekend – stage 6 continues indefinitely
Power utility Eskom says that stage 6 load shedding will continue through to the weekend and will be in effect indefinitely.
The group said that increased demand and the depletion of emergency reserves necessitated the move.
“The increase in the demand for electricity due to cold weather, particularly Monday and Tuesday, was anticipated – however, this demand exceeded what was forecasted,” Eskom said.
The group said that it is obligated to carry generation reserves to cater for unforeseen events, and these reserves were used on Monday and Tuesday to compensate for the increased demand.
Due to the failure of additional generation units since Sunday, the reserves have been depleted and can no longer buffer the lingering effects of the cold weather and make up for the lost generation.
“Therefore, stage 6 load shedding will continue to be implemented over the weekend to replenish the depleted emergency reserves to permit the possible reduction of load shedding in the coming week,” it said.
The group confirmed that stage 6 load shedding will be implemented indefinitely until further notice.
Breakdowns have increased to 17,679MW of generating capacity, bringing the group dangerously close to its ‘worst-case’ scenario of 18,000MW, which would necessitate stage 7 or 8 load shedding.
A generating unit each at Grootvlei, Hendrina, Lethabo, and Tutuka, two generating units at Arnot and Matla, and three generating units at Kriel power stations have been taken out of service since Sunday.
A generating unit at Kendal and two units at Tutuka power stations have been delayed to return to service.
Eskom said its teams are working around the clock to return these units to services. It is anticipated that eight units will be returned to service in the next few days.
Given the spike in demand (to around 34,000MW), Eskom called on the public to assist in reducing demand, especially between 17h00 and 21h00, which are the peaks.
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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