Why load shedding is back again

Load shedding is back in South Africa, but Eskom is confident that planned maintenance and new units coming online will provide relief to South Africans in winter.

Speaking at a media briefing on Saturday (8 March), electricity minister Kgosientsho Ramokgopa said that the state-owned entity has been making steady headway in its planned maintenance, which has been essential in cutting load shedding over the last year.

However, trips at unit 2 at the Koeberg nuclear power station were exacerbated by less than optimal coal for Kusile after adverse weather this week.

With these issues, 14,000MW of electricity is offline, hence the power utility implementing stage 3 load shedding from Friday, 7 March, to Monday, 10 March.

Ramokgopa said that planned maintenance will continue aggressively going into winter, where Eskom will cut planned maintenance due to heightened demand during the colder months.

This is why load shedding tends to be higher during the summer months than during the winter months.

Eskom CEO Dan Morokane also noted that about 1,500MW of planned maintenance slipped, failing to return to power after planned outages.

This, combined with the issues at Koeberg and Kusile, meant Eskom had no room to respond. Thus, Eskom is now prioritising the timely return of planned maintenance units.

Marokane also noted that the power utility would focus on replenishing its reserves, which it has used due to the increase in unplanned outages.

The CEO noted that 3,000MW has already returned to the grid, including the two units from Kusile.

Eskom also believes that about 750MW of capacity is expected to come back online tomorrow, with 2,800MW, including Koeberg, expected back online on Monday.

South Africa’s nuclear power station outside of Cape Town has been offline for nearly a week following a major trip.

Looking forward, on top of the planned maintenance, Eskom is also focusing on bringing new capacity online, such as Kusile unit 6, which should be connected to the grid by 18 March.

New capacity and units out of maintenance will then form the backbone of Eskom’s response to the winter period, with its winter outlook set to be released later this month.

He said that reserves have carried Eskom quite well over the week, and they should be replenished by the end of tonight, 08 March.

Eskom has shut off its diesel generators to ensure they can be replenished.