Electricity supply will be extremely tight from April to July, Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba said in Johannesburg on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
“As we are heading to winter, I would like to urge that electricity be used carefully,” he said at a briefing by Eskom on the state of its system.<\/p>\n
Improvement of Eskom’s maintenance practices was moving in the right direction.<\/p>\n
“This will eventually ensure long-term security of reliable electricity supply.”<\/p>\n
He urged the country to continue supporting Eskom’s efforts to “keep the lights on”.<\/p>\n
“No effort is insignificant in this regard.”<\/p>\n
Gigaba said Eskom chose summer to do its maintenance as demand for electricity was not as high as in winter.<\/p>\n
“Summer is characterised by much flatter and lower demand profile, hence Eskom uses this opportunity to perform its maintenance.”<\/p>\n
He said the maintenance was necessary to improve and maintain the utility’s performance levels.<\/p>\n
“Due to a decline in demand and reduced capacity, the system stays tight throughout the day in summer.”<\/p>\n
The pressure of managing a tight power system was also due to delays in the construction of new power stations. Gigaba said Eskom and its customers had, so far, been able to avoid a system collapse when no further reserves were available.<\/p>\n
“Without the support of customers, Eskom would have struggled to fulfil its obligation and meet its mandate.”<\/p>\n
His department would be looking at ways to avoid disruptive power cuts. He commended the support of big business, particularly when Eskom declared a state of emergency on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Major industrial customers were urged to reduce electricity consumption by at least 10 percent. Shopping centres and retail outlets were asked to switch off geysers and adjust air-conditioning to 23 degrees Celsius to help reduce demand.<\/p>\n
Eskom’s CEO, Brian Dames said voluntary contributions from commercial and residential sectors helped avoid power cuts during the emergency.<\/p>\n
“Despite declaring emergencies, there has been no rotational load-shedding across the country because customers have responded voluntarily,” Dames said.<\/p>\n
Eskom lifts power emergency<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Eskom: power tight for 2 more years<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n