Load shedding makes a comeback – here is the new schedule
Power utility Eskom has announced that stage 2 load shedding will return on Tuesday (9 January) due to breakdowns and delays.
The group said that the loss of three generating units and the delay in returning two units back to service has led to “setbacks”, necessitating the outages.
Stage 2 load shedding will kick in from 16h00 on Tuesday and will continue overnight. Stage 1 load shedding will be implemented from 05h00 until 16h00 on Wednesday.
The pattern of stage 2 load shedding in the evening and stage 1 during the day will continue until further notice, the group said.
Tuesday, 9 January
- Suspended: until 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Wednesday, 10 January
- Stage 2: 00h00 to 05h00
- Stage 1: 05h00 to 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Thursday, 11 January
- Stage 2: 00h00 to 05h00
- Stage 1: 05h00 to 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Friday, 12 January
- Stage 2: 00h00 to 05h00
- Stage 1: 05h00 to 16h00
- Stage 2: 16h00 to 00h00
Unplanned breakdowns have increased in the new year and are currently at 14,953MW of generating capacity, while the capacity out of service for planned maintenance is 7,638MW.
The utility said that its teams are working to return 2,700MW of power to the grid before the end of the weak.
Demand is also returning to normal patterns, with Eskom anticipating evening peak demand of 25,000MW.
Electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said in Tuesday that the load shedding outlook for 2024 remains murky, with no guarantees that outages will stop.
He said that even though Eskom has been making small gains and measurable progress in maintaining its fleet, the majority of generating units remain unpredictable and unreliable.
Projections for the year show that load shedding is likely to remain a prominent feature in 2024 – but with the silver lining that the outcome for the year should be significantly better than the levels of outages seen in 2023.
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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